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Accessibility Statement

Our aim is to provide an accessible site that accommodates the full range of users. An accessible website does not exclude anybody due to their abilities, or the method they chose to access the web. A well-designed website works for everyone.

This statement covers www.southernbcp.co.uk and the website is run by Southern Building Control Partnership. We want as many people as possible to be able to use this website. For example, that means you should be able to:

  • Zoom in up to 300% without the text spilling off the screen
  • Navigate most of the website using just a keyboard
  • Navigate most of the website using speech recognition software
  • Listen to most of the website using a screen reader (including the most recent versions of JAWS, NVDA and VoiceOver)
  • We’ve also made the website text as simple as possible to understand
  • AbilityNet has advice on making your device easier to use if you have a disability

We have also made changes to our colour scheme that provide a higher visual contrast in graphic elements and areas with text.

How accessible is this website?

While most of our main website is accessible, some areas are not. These are generally where we use a third party site to provide the information or service. (Such as our online application portal.) These third parties are partly or wholly out of our control and so may not conform to the same levels of accessibility as the rest of our website.

What to do if you cannot access parts of this website

If you need information on this website in a different format such as large print, easy read or accessible PDFs please email theteam@southernbcp.co.uk or call 0330 0249355. We’ll consider your request and get back to you in 10 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 us or call 0330 0249355

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).

Contacting us by phone or visiting us in person

The reception area, council chamber and interview rooms at the council offices in Oxted where we are based, have induction loops which amplify sound for those with hearing aids, or if you contact us before your visit we can arrange a British Sign Language (BSL) interpreter. 

Technical information about this website’s accessibility

Southern Building Control Partnership is committed to making its website accessible, in accordance with the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018. This website is partially compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) version 2.1 AA standard, due to the non-compliances listed below, which are all third party plug-in sites. The content listed below is non-accessible for the following reasons:

Non-compliance with the accessibility regulations

Payments

Our payment form is not accessible and has the following errors

  • Missing headings 1.3.1 (Information and Relationships)
  • Form labels 1.3.1 (Information and Relationships)
  • Contrast issues. 1.4.3 (Contrast Minimum)

This payment system is currently being upgraded and a new accessible form should be in place by May 2021. 

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

PDFs

We make the majority of our pdfs accessible before adding them to the website, but some which are essential to providing information about our services, may not be structured so they’re accessible to a screen reader. This doesn’t meet WCAG 2.1 success criterion 4.1.2 (Name, Role, Value). The accessibility regulations do not require us to fix PDFs or other documents published before 23 September 2018 if they’re not essential to providing our services.

Third party content

This is content under someone else’s control which we did not pay for or develop. 

We link to some content and services provided by LABC and LABC Warranty, which are private companies and exempt from the regulations. This will include web page content, documents and video guides.

What we’re doing to improve accessibility

We are working to resolve all identified accessibility issues which are within our control. If you find a particular issue not listed in this statement please email us.

We use Silktide to carry out accessibility testing of our website every five days.