Accessibility Statement
Accessibility statement for the University of Gloucestershire Research Repository
This accessibility statement applies to https://eprints.glos.ac.uk/
This website is run by University of Gloucestershire. We want as many people as possible to be able to use this website.
AbilityNet https://abilitynet.org.uk has advice on making your device easier to use if you have a disability.
How accessible this website is
We know some parts of this website are currently not fully accessible:
- The website makes available many PDF documents which are not fully accessible to screen reader software and demonstrate other accessibility issues.
- This website runs on the open source software EPrints version 3.4.1 and has been customised for our own requirements and branding. The parts of EPrints which are not fully accessible prior to our customisations can be found in a list provided on the central EPrints Accessibility information page - How accessible EPrints is.
We will continue our efforts to improve the accessibility of this website and will implement updates to the website as they become available.
Feedback and contact information
To request information on this website in a different format please contact the Research Repository Team. We will consider your request and will aim to get back to you in 7 working days.
- Email the Research Repository Team eprints@glos.ac.uk
If you cannot view the map on our ‘contact us’ page, email us https://eprints.glos.ac.uk/contact.html 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 the Research Repository Team: eprints@glos.ac.uk.
Tell us where the problem you encountered is providing a URL and what the problem is eg overlapping text, small text, keyboard navigation, mouse clicking, colour combinations, alt text, video captions. Please also tell us about the computer and browser you are using and any additional accessibility software you use. Your enquiry will be directed to the Research Repository Manager.
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 or visiting us in person
Selected rooms have audio induction loops, or if you give us notice of your visit we can arrange a British Sign Language (BSL) interpreter. Find out how to contact us https://eprints.glos.ac.uk/contact.html.
Technical information about this website’s accessibility
The University of Gloucestershire 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-accessible content
The content listed below is non-accessible for the following reasons.
While the HTML pages of the website demonstrate high levels of accessibility (e.g. the Research Repository main pages, single views, lists, content elements, etc.), we are aware that the file content that the website makes available is not fully accessible:
Issues with PDF content
As the website is an open access research repository, the principal content made available to users are research outputs such as articles, papers, posters and reports, many of which are PDF documents. Many PDF documents, especially older ones, are not fully accessible to screen reader software and do not contain other common accessibility features. In particular:
- many documents, especially older ones, do not conform to the PDF/A archiving format.
- many lack bookmarks or document titles, therefore failing to meet WCAG 2.1 success criteria 2.4.5 and 2.4.2.
- many discuss scientific or scholarly concepts which may be abbreviated with no mechanism for discovering the meaning of the abbreviations, or unusual words arising from scholarly discourse without definitions. These issues each fail WCAG 2.1 criteria 3.1.4 and 3.1.1 respectively.
- there may be some documents that fail to specify their human language, thereby failing WCAG 2.1 success criterion 3.1.1.
- many documents may not reflow satisfactorily. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.4.10.
Issues with non-text content
Images distributed as single jpg or gif files do not have a text alternative (however screen reader software can access the image file metadata where present). Metadata fields can be used to supply a description, title, keywords, license terms, date, and copyright holder. However, due to the lack of alternative text this fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.1.1 (non-text content).
Non-compliance with the accessibility regulations
Issues with the website more generally
Areas of the website which are not document-based demonstrate good levels of accessibility. However, the following issues have been identified and are in the process of being addressed:
- Headings on some of our pages do not appear in a logical order. This does not meet WCAG 2.1 success criterion 2.4.10.
- Some of the forms and interactive search pages on our website are not appropriately labelled or do not have labels. This does not meet WCAG 2.1 success criterion 3.3.2.
- Interactive elements of the website (such as search) do not use status messages to update screen readers of a change in state. This does not meet WCAG 2.1 success criterion 3.2.2.
The Repository Team aims to add text alternatives for images in UoG post 23rd Sept 2018 produced PDFs by Sept 2020 except where these are Research Excellence Framework 2021 submission items in which case provision is on request rather than immediate download.
The parts of EPrints which are not fully compliant with WCAG 2.1 AA standards prior to our customisations can be found in a list provided on the central EPrints Accessibility information page - Non accessible content.
Disproportionate burden
The University of Gloucestershire does not claim disproportionate burden for any of the known accessibility problems.
Content that’s not within the scope of the accessibility regulations
PDFs and other documents
Some of our PDFs and Word documents are essential to providing our services. For example, we have PDFs with information on how users can access our services. By September 2020, we aim to either fix these or replace them with accessible HTML pages.
Some research article manuscripts and conference papers use visual imagery to present content eg technical and engineering models, this content requires subject discipline or professional knowledge ie it cannot be retrospectively interpreted by administrative personnel. Enquiries regarding such content will be referred to the author / researcher if they have maintained an association with the University.
PhD pdf files: post September 2024
From September 2024 PhD files uploaded in PDF format will only be processed using Optical Character Recognition software (OCR) to enable compatibility with screen reading software. If you require a fully accessible version please email the Research Repository Team eprints@glos.ac.uk
Third Party content and extensions
University of Gloucestershire Research Repository contains some third-party functional content and extensions that we may be unable to influence.
The Altmetric plugin default renders an empty div element (with attributes), and requires javascript to convert that into some useful elements. Solutions are currently being explored.
What we’re doing to improve accessibility
University of Gloucestershire Research Repository runs on the open source software EPrints version 3.4.1 and has been customised for our own requirements and branding. The EPrints Accessibility information pages shows how and when EPrints plan to improve accessibility with their software releases. EPrints Accessibility roadmap.
We will be updating this statement to reflect our progress on rectifying the failures discovered and will provide an outline of any forthcoming resolutions where possible.
Preparation of this accessibility statement
This statement was prepared on 17-09-2020. It was last reviewed on 17-09-2020.
University of Gloucestershire Research Repository was last tested on 13-08-2020.
The Research Repository runs on customized open source software Eprints version 3.4.1. It has been customized for the University of Gloucestershire’s own requirements and branding. A manual audit of in-house branding and adaptations for mobile technology was carried out by University personnel and the colour palette is confirmed as accessible. Other sections of the repository accessibility compliance were informed by Eprints own audit of an uncustomized version of the software. Customizations and 3rd party functional content and extensions eg the Carousel for image display and Altmetrics plugins are not developed by Eprints Services. Accessibility issues in relation to 3rd party functional content will be raised directly with the developers.
This consisted of a manual audit of in-house branding and mobile device ease of use using a browser and various assistive technologies on a sample set of pages that were broadly representative of the website as a whole, this was carried out on 30th June 2020 by the University’s Digital Marketing Officer (Web). This included the website homepage, interactive functionality, and search pages ie publicly accessible functions. All new website functionality will be audited for its conformance to WCAG 2.1 accessibility standards. When we design, develop or implement new features WCAG conformance will constitute a standard testing procedure.
