Accessibility

You can adapt this website to meet your needs. The settings you create on this page will be saved for future visits. If you wish to return to the standard settings, click the "Reset settings" button.

Images and alt tags

We have avoided using excessive graphics within the website where possible to ensure quick download times and access to information which cannot be read if in image format. Where images have been used we have added 'Alt' tags - text alternatives so that you will still know what the image is meant to convey even if it does not load or if you've have chosen to browse with the images switched off or you are using an assistive technology like a screen reader to browse the webpage rather than view.

PDF documents

This site uses PDF (Adobe Acrobat) file format for the publication of large and complex documents. Please note that Adobe Acrobat documents can be converted back to plain text using Adobe's Web-based conversion service.

Read aloud and / or translate a page with Browsealoud

We aim to make our site as accessible as possible and have provided Browsealoud, to help you read information on our website.

How to use Browsealoud to help you read or translate our website

Click on the Browsealoud image that appears in the top right of your screen to launch the support toolbar. 

Then you just click on any text on the screen to hear it read out loud to you.

You can move the floating tool-bar anywhere on the page / screen.

What else can Browsealoud help with?

Browsealoud offers a range of reading and translation support - helping you to access and understand our website better. 

  • text-to-speech: click on or select any text to hear it read aloud
  • translation: written and spoken translations in multiple languages
  • text magnification: enlarges text and reads it out loud
  • mp3 generation: converts selected text into an MP3 audio file
  • screen mask: blocks distractions on screen with a tinted mask
  • web page simplifier: removes clutter from the screen - great for printing pages
  • settings: customize options to suit individual needs or preferences

Video: How to use Browsealoud

Includes audio and subtitles

 https://youtu.be/w9uxDRpISUI


Need support?

Visit support.texthelp.com, the dedicated support portal from Texthelp - the makers of Browsealoud.

Browsealoud
British Sign Language

Content to follow

Report an accessibility problem

Reporting accessibility problems with this website

We’re always looking to improve the accessibility of this website. If you find any problems not listed on this page or think we’re not meeting accessibility requirements, contact local.offer@blackburn.gov.uk

Enforcement procedure

The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) is responsible for enforcing the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018 (the ‘accessibility regulations’). If you’re not happy with how we respond to your complaint, contact the Equality Advisory and Support Service (EASS).

Accessibility Statement

Accessibility statement for the Blackburn with Darwen Local Offer

This accessibility statement applies to https://www.bwd-localoffer.org.uk/

We want as many people as possible to be able to use this website. For example, that means you should be able to:

  • change colours, contrast levels and fonts
  • zoom in up to 300% without the text spilling off the screen
  • navigate most of the website using just a keyboard
  • listen to most of the website using a screen reader

We’ve also made the website text as simple as possible to understand where we provide the content and have supplied guidance to other services who create their own entries requesting they do the same.

AbilityNet has advice on making your device easier to use if you have a disability.

How accessible this website is

We know some parts of this website are not fully accessible: 

  • you cannot modify the line height or spacing of text
  • most older PDF documents are not fully accessible to screen reader software

Feedback and contact information

If you need information on this website in a different format please contact us at local.offer@blackburn.gov.uk, or telephone (01254) 585061.

We’ll consider your request and get back to you in 2 working days.

Reporting accessibility problems with this website

We’re always looking to improve the accessibility of this website. If you find any problems not listed on this page or think we’re not meeting accessibility requirements, contact local.offer@blackburn.gov.uk

Enforcement procedure

The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) is responsible for enforcing the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018 (the ‘accessibility regulations’). If you’re not happy with how we respond to your complaint, contact the Equality Advisory and Support Service (EASS).

Technical information about this website’s accessibility

Blackburn with Darwen Council is committed to making it’s website accessible, in accordance with the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018.

Compliance status

This website is partially compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines version 2.1 AA standard, due to ‘the non-compliances’, listed below.

Non-accessible content

The content listed below is non-accessible for the following reasons.

Non-compliance with the accessibility regulations

  • Some images are missing alt tags
  • Several form elements are missing labels
  • There is an empty button
  • An Aria menu is broken
  • There are a number of low contrast errors

Content that’s not within the scope of the accessibility regulations

Many of our older PDFs don’t meet accessibility standards. For example, they may not be marked up so they’re accessible to a screen reader.

Some of our PDFs are essential to providing our services. For example, we have PDFs with information on how users can access our services and forms published. We plan to either fix these or replace them with accessible HTML pages.

Any new PDF we publish will meet accessibility standards as far as is possible, unless we determine that they represent a disproportionate burden within the meaning of the accessibility regulations. Ultimately we plan to provide an accessible HTML version of the information as the primary source.

What we’re doing to improve accessibility

The platform providers, Idox, have undertaken a full accessibility audit of our website and have been commissioned to rectify accessibility concerns identified during the audit.

Preparation of this accessibility statement

This statement was prepared on 02.11.20 It was last reviewed on 02.11.20

This website was last tested on 30.09.20. The test was carried out externally by Idox.  Testing tools used were Axe testing tool plugin for Chrome, Wave evaluation tool plugin for Chrome, NVDA screen reader for Windows, manual review carried out using iPad using Safari, iPhone using Safari, Android phone using Chrome, PC using IE, Edge and Chrome 

We used this approach to deciding on a sample of pages to test: we looked at a selection of pages using different templates.

We tested:

  • Home Page
  • Frequently Asked Questions Page
  • Things to Do Page
  • Results Page
  • Record View Page
  • Sign In Page 
List your service/activity