Shared Lives Web Accessibility Statement

This accessibility statement applies to https://valesharedlives.co.uk/.

The goal of the Shared Lives website is to guarantee the accessibility of its content and services for supporting individuals with varying needs including learning disabilities, physical disabilities, autism, mental health issues, and dementia by matching them with a Carer. 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 through the website using a keyboard or speech recognition software
  • listen to the website using a screen reader (including the most recent versions of JAWS, NVDA and VoiceOver)

We have 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.

Measures to support accessibility

The Shared Lives website takes the following measures to ensure accessibility:

  • Includes accessibility as part of our mission statement.
  • Includes accessibility throughout our internal policies.

Conformance status

The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) define requirements for designers and developers to improve accessibility for people with disabilities. It defines three levels of conformance: Level A, Level AA, and Level AAA. The Shared Lives website aims to conform with WCAG 2.1 level AA.

Accessibility Efforts & Disclaimer

We remain dedicated to enhancing the accessibility of the Shared Lives website and its services. This commitment is rooted in the belief that ensuring a smooth, inclusive, and unrestricted experience for individuals with disabilities is a shared ethical responsibility.

We are always striving to enhance the accessibility of all pages and materials on our website, it’s possible that some content has not yet been fully aligned with accessibility standards. This could be attributed to the fact that we may not have identified the most suitable fix to improve a user’s experience.

How accessible is this website

We know some parts of the Shared Lives website are not fully accessible. We will update the statement when issues are fixed or when we expect them to be fixed.

Content not within the scope of the accessibility regulations

PDFs and other documents

Many of our older PDFs and Word documents do not meet accessibility standards – for example, they may not be structured so they’re accessible to a screen reader. This does not meet WCAG 2.1. 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.

Any new PDFs or Word documents we publish will meet accessibility standards. We will highlight any PDFs or Word documents that we link to that have been produced by third parties and may not meet the accessibility standards.

Reporting Accessibility Problems with this Website

We are always looking to improve the accessibility of the Shared Lives website. If you encounter content that you cannot access, then please use the following link https://valesharedlives.co.uk/contact/ to contact us and we will provide you with an accessible alternative.

Any feedback we receive we aim to get back to you within a suitable time. (If a response is requested).

If you are not happy with how we have responded to the issue you have raised with us about the accessibility of our website, then please contact the Equality Advisory and Support Service (EASS). The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) is responsible for ensuring websites meet accessibility standards.

How we tested this website

The Shared Lives website was and is currently being tested for compliance with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines V2.1 level A and level AA, and these tests have been carried out internally.

Third-party content and functionality

We may make use of third-party resources that embed content on our website. Wherever possible we will ensure these are conformant.

Technical specifications

Accessibility of this website relies on the following technologies to work with the particular combination of web browsers and any assistive technologies or plugins installed on your computer:

  • HTML
  • CSS
  • JavaScript

These technologies are relied upon for conformance with the accessibility guidelines used.

What we’re doing to improve accessibility

Our accessibility journey is continuing. We regularly review our website and its content to identify and fix known issues.

This statement is reviewed at least once a year and updated.

Last reviewed: January 2024