This page includes:
This accessibility statement applies to southampton.ac.uk, run by the University of Southampton.
We want as many users as possible to be able to use this website. For example, users should be able to:
AbilityNet has advice on making your device easier to use if you have a disability.
We know some parts of this website are not fully accessible, as:
We're continually improving the accessibility of this website. If you find any problems not listed on this page or think we're not meeting accessibility requirements, please email digital-accessibility@soton.ac.uk.
You can also contact us 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 get back to you within 30 days.
You can contact the University by calling +44 (0)23 8059 5000. You can also visit our main reception in Building 37 on Highfield Campus.
Find out how to contact other teams or departments at the University.
The Equality and Human Rights Commission is responsible for enforcing the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018 (the ‘accessibility regulations’). If you’re not satisfied with how we respond to your complaint, contact the Equality Advisory and Support Service.
The University of Southampton 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 not compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines version 2.1 AA standard. The non-compliances and exemptions' are listed below.
The content listed below is non-accessible for the following reasons.
The following issues and areas of content are not compliant with WCAG 2.1 AA standard.
While decorative images do not feature text alternatives, some other images have poor or missing text alternatives. This means that people using assistive technology may not be able to access the information conveyed by these images.
This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.1.1 (non-text content).
We plan to add correct text alternatives for images as we review and amend each page.
Some of our pages include hyperlinks with an unclear purpose or target. These links do not make sense when taken out of context. Some pages have several links to the same location.
This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 2.4.4 (Link Purpose (In Context))
We plan to correct link text as we review and amend each page.
Some of our pages feature skipped, missed or incorrect heading levels. On some pages, heading styles have been used for visual emphasis, rather than for document structure. This means that people using assistive technology cannot always accurately navigate or understand the structure of these pages.
This fails WCAG 2.1 success criteria 1.3.1 (Info and Relationships), 2.4.6 (Headings and Labels) and 2.4.10 (Section Headings).
We plan to correct heading structures as we review and amend each page.
In places, the contrast ratio between text and background is not high enough. This means that some people may find it hard to read some text.
This fails WCAG 2.1 success criteria 1.4.3 (Contrast (Minimum)).
We plan to review and improve contrast ratios as we transform the University’s web estate.
Some pages contain content presented in tables. These do not always have the correct header, scope, caption or summary markup. This means that some people using assistive technology may struggle to accurately understand the information presented in these tables.
This fails WCAG 2.1 success criteria 1.3.1 (Info and Relationships).
We plan to review and improve the accessibility of our tables as we review each page. We will also assess whether there are more accessible ways to present this information.
Some content on our pages, including the search feature, is not accessible using a keyboard. This means that people using a keyboard may not be able to search our content.
This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 2.1.1 (Keyboard). We’ll fix this as part of the continuing transition to our new website this year.
A border is not always visible around tabbed content. Where it is, the contrast might not be clear enough. This means that people using a keyboard may not be able to navigate our content easily.
This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 2.4.7 (Focus Visible). We’ll fix this as part of the continuing transition to our new website this year.
It is not possible to use the tab key to navigate our cookie policy. This means that people using a keyboard cannot navigate onto page content.
This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 2.1.2 (No Keyboard Trap). This is our highest priority to resolve. We’re working on fixing the issue before the end of the month.
There are currently no issues on southampton.ac.uk that we consider to be a disproportionate burden to fix.
The following content is not within the scope of these regulations, so it may be inaccessible.
The 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.
The regulations do not require interactive maps to be accessible, providing an accessible alternative is provided.
The regulations do not require that live video streams have captions, but we will strive to provide these where possible.
We use third-party services and content across our website. This includes things like forms, timetables, calendars, social media feeds and more. We often do not have control over the accessibility of these types of content.
But we’re working with vendors and reviewing our procurement processes to make sure as many people as possible can use these services.
We ask third-party suppliers to provide links to their Accessibility Conformance Report (ACR). They can do this using the Voluntary Product Accessibility Template (VPAT). The template supports Section 508, EN 301 549 (PDF), and W3C/WAI WCAG.
We support the searchBOX project, which provides a database of accessibility information about third-party vendors across the public sector. You can search for third-party accessibility statements using the free searchBOX finder tool.
The University has been carrying out a multi-year digital transformation which began with a project called OneWeb. The work aims to transform our digital estate with a focus on creating inclusive platforms, products and services.
As a result we're preparing to transition to a new website later this year.
This statement was prepared on 29 October 2020. It was last reviewed on 18 May 2022.
This website was last tested on 28 September 2020.
We will continue to test our site regularly, and will prioritise the areas with the highest impact for the most users. We welcome your feedback and encourage you to get in contact to help us target our priorities.