Accessibility statement

This accessibility statement applies to www.rossendale.gov.uk

This website is run by Rossendale Borough Council. We want as many people as possible to be able to use this website. For example, that means you should be able to use this website. For example, that means you should be able to read and understand our content.

We create content to meet the accessibility standards outlined in this statement.

View the site your way

You can change the colours, contrast levels, font styles and magnify the page.

Contacting us by phone or visiting us in person

We provide a text relay service for people who are deaf, hearing impaired or have a speech impediment. Our offices have audio induction loops, or if you contact us before your visit we can arrange a British Sign Language (BSL) interpreter. Find out how to contact us https://www.rossendale.gov.uk/directory_record/231543/one_stop_shop

Navigate by headings

Our headings are all logically ordered. Use browser plugins or assistive technology such as screen readers to list the headings and subheadings in the page and go straight to the heading you need.

Navigate by links

Users of assistive technology such as screen readers can get a list of all the links on a page and understand their purpose from the link text.

Listening to content

Use text to speech browser plugins or assistive technology to listen to content you select with the mouse or keyboard.

Screen reader users can both listen to the content and navigate around through the site pages and menus.

Using different devices

The website is designed to be used by all new browsers and devices. This offers you a variety of compatible assistive technologies.

Alternative formats

We’ve designed our content to be as accessible as possible by providing maximum personalisation. If you still experience barriers, you can contact us by sending an email to webmaster@rossendalebc.gov.uk to request alternative format documents.

Auditing

We carry out regular accessibility audits of the website and a full website audit on an annual basis using WCAG 2.1 AA standards which guide our long term audit and improvement plans.

In addition to this, we carry out ad-hoc testing of pages and the site as a whole using third party testing tools.

For more information about our commitment to compliance and how we check and maintain the accessibility of the website, read our technical accessibility statement.

What we do about known issues

We strive to achieve and maintain WCAG 2.1 AA standards, but it is not always possible for all our content to be accessible. Where content is likely to create a barrier, we’ll state a reason, warn users and offer alternatives.

If we have failed to identify a barrier, please contact the webteam.

Third party content

Links to other websites

We link to other websites that may offer benefit to our users, as well as embedding content provided by some external webtes into some of our pages. This may include:

• news websites
• social media platforms
• official information sources, such as GOV.UK or NHS.UK.

We are not responsible for the accessibility of these or any other websites we do not manage; if you experience any accessibility issue with third-party content then please do inform us to make us aware of the problem, but please also raise it with the third-party content provider for resolution as we will be unable to act ourselves.

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 the webteam.

Last update

This statement was last reviewed in September 2021. We update this statement annually and will review it in September 2022.