Accessibility

Accessibility Statement 

This accessibility statement applies to the Newport City Council corporate website, known as www.newport.gov.uk

This website is run by Newport City Council. We want as many people as possible to be able to use this website. For example, this means you should be able to:

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

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 or any accessibility requirements.

The site uses ReachDeck software so that you can hear pages being read out loud as well as using a magnifier and other visual aids. 

How accessible this website is

To help as many people as possible, we have been using the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 requirement. These guidelines are recognised all over the world as the gold standard for making a website accessible and usable for everyone.

We have chosen to target WCAG 2.1 AA requirement for all our web properties.

However, we know that some parts of this website are not fully accessible.

  • Some older PDF, Word, Excel, and PowerPoint documents are not fully accessible to screen reader software
  • Some of our older videos may not feature captions
  • Some of our online forms are difficult to navigate using just a keyboard
  • Colour contrast needs improving on certain items. 

Website redevelopment 

Newport City Council is currently starting the process of redeveloping its corporate website. 

As part of this work, we will be moving to a new system that will provide us with a website that has improved functionality, accessibility and design. 

Users should expect to see progress on this in early 2024. 

Feedback and contact information

If you need information on this website in a different format like accessible PDF, large print, easy read, audio recording or braille:

We’ll consider your request and advise within 10 days. 

If you cannot view the map on our ‘contact us’ page, call or email us for directions.

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 [email protected] 

Your email will reach our communications team who will look into the issues you describe and respond if necessary.

When reporting accessibility issues with our site, please include:

  • A description of the problem 
  • A link to where you’re experiencing the problem 
  • What software and computer you are using 

This is only for telling us about accessibility problems. If you'd like to contact us about something else, and you need a response, please use our contact us page.

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

We run a TextLocal service where residents can text us and we can reply via email to their phone. 

Our offices also have audio induction loops, or if you contact us before your visit, we can arrange a British Sign Language (BSL) interpreter or someone to translate a language other than English or Welsh.

Documents, bills, forms and other resources are available in other languages and formats on request. We will also discuss with the customer when arranging to find the best solution.

Technical information about this website’s accessibility 

Newport City Council is committed to making its 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-compliance with the accessibility regulations 

Some images do not have a text alternative, so people using a screen reader cannot access the information. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.1.1 (non-text content).

Aided by the development of our new website, when we publish new content we’ll make sure our use of images meets accessibility standards.

Issues with PDFs and Word documents

Most of our PDFs and Word documents don’t meet accessibility standards – for example, they may not be marked up so they’re accessible to a screen reader.

We are aiming to be in a position where any new PDF or Word document we publish will meet accessibility standards 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 and remove PDFs where no longer needed.

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.

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

Third-party applications 

We require that any new third-party systems we commission for the website are Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.1 AA compliant.

However, third party applications are partly or wholly out of our control and so may not conform to the same levels of accessibility as the rest of the website.

Third-party applications include:

  • iTrent (job vacancies)
  • Abavus (My Newport/My Council Services)
  • Public-I (webcasting) 
  • Modern.gov (Councillor information, meetings, agendas and minutes)
  • Home Options Newport
  • Idox (planning applications search, building control regulations search and licensing register)

Preparation of this accessibility statement 

This statement was prepared on 27 September 2022. 

This statement was last reviewed on 7 August 2023.

This website was last tested on 7 August 2023. The test was carried out using the platform Siteimprove

We scored 84.2/100 for accessibility, 90.9% is compliant for level A WCAG 2.1 checks, 77.2% is compliant for level AA WCAG 2.1 checks, and 65.9% is compliant for level AAA WCAG 2.1 checks. 

Our overall accessibility score, as well as our level A and AA compliance has improved since our last review at the start of 2023. 

We aim to improve the overall accessibility score and levels AA and AAA further by fixing some of the issues listed earlier in this statement.