West Herts Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust (WHTH) is committed to making its website accessible, in accordance with the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018.
This accessibility statement applies to the website for West Hertfordshire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust.
We want as many people as possible to be able to use this website.
You should be able to:
- change colours and contrast
- increase the size of the text
- 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 made the website text as simple as possible. We’re committed to using plain English to make sure the information is easy to understand.
AbilityNet has advice on making your device easier to use if you have a disability.
Compliance status
This website is partially compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines version 2.2 AA standard, due to the non-compliances and the exemptions listed below.
Non-accessible content
We are committed to meeting our legal obligations set out in The Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018 (“No. 2 Regulations”).
We know some parts of websites aren’t fully accessible. The content listed below is non-compliant with the accessibility regulations.
- Policies, strategies and publications saved in PDF format.
- Agendas, papers and minutes for our committees and meetings in public saved in PDF format.
- Some older PDF documents are not fully accessible to screen reader software
- Some videos don’t have captions.
- Some of our images are missing text alternatives (alt-text)
- Some images of text are used across the site that might be difficult to interpret using screen reader software
Non-compliance with the accessibility regulations
YouTube videos
Captions/subtitles
Website visitors may need to check their settings or click through to the full YouTube site in order to access the onscreen words – if you require a transcript for any of our videos, please contact the communications team at westherts.
To turn captions on, please click the button on the embedded video player – this is reachable using the tab key
PDF documents
Not all of our PDF documents are accessible to screen reader software.
If you come across an inaccessible PDF document that contains information you need, please contact the communications team at westherts.
Disproportionate burden
We are unable to make our board papers accessible. Board papers are uploaded to the website monthly as PDF documents numbering hundreds of pages.
These pages contain scanned images and large reports sourced from multiple authors and services.
They are compiled and uploaded very shortly before they are legally required to be publicly available. Any delay due to making them accessible would risk a fine or a cancelled public meeting.
The cost of converting these documents is significant and is not financially justifiable. Instead, we ask you to contact the trust board secretary to request information contained in the board papers in alternative formats.
We have very limited in-house resource to carry out accessibility checks. The process for these checks includes a combination of manual testing and automated testing using accessibility monitoring tools.
As we continue to update our website, older content is archived which will eventually lead to the removal of many inaccessible PDFs.
Preparation of this accessibility statement
This statement was first prepared on 22 September 2020.
The statement was reviewed and updated on 24 November 2023 further to revisions made following an evaluation and assessment by the Government Digital Service in August 2023.
The statement was reviewed and updated on 17 December 2024 with minor revisions made in relation to the change of website provider.
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 westherts.
Feedback and contact information
If you need information on this website in a different format, please contact our Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) on 01923 217198 or westherts.
We will respond to you in 10 days. For some requests our response time will be less than 10 days if the document includes a deadline or closing date.
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).