Accessibility Statement (Family Information Service)

This accessibility statement to content and information on the Buckinghamshire Family Information Service (BFIS) directory, the SEND directory, and Buckinghamshire Family Information Service microsite.

As a minimum, you should be able to:

• zoom in up to 400% without problems
• navigate most of the website using just a keyboard
• operate most of the website using a screen reader

We have also tried to make the website text as simple as possible to understand.

For advice on making your device easier to use if you have a disability, visit AbilityNet.

familyinfo.buckinghamshire.gov.uk is fully compliant with WCAG 2.2 AA standards. The directories directory.familyinfo.buckinghamshire.gov.uk and directory.send.buckinghamshire.gov.uk are partially compliant with WCAG 2.2 AA standards.

However, we are constantly working to improve both our compliance and our users' experience.

We know that some parts of the microsite and directories are not fully accessible:

• some online maps and mapping services cannot be easily navigated
• some pages and documents are not clearly written or structured
• some online tools may be difficult to use for assistive technologies
• some videos do not have captions
• some content such as images do not have good text alternatives
• some documents published before 23 September 2018 are not accessible but can be requested in an accessible format

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

We will consider your request and get back to you within 20 days.

We are always looking to improve the accessibility of this microsite and our directories. If you find any problems not listed on this page or think we are not meeting accessibility requirements, contact the FIS Digital team:

• [email protected]
• 01296 382 246

There are several ways to contact us:

• [email protected] for all information, advice, and support assistance
• [email protected] for all questions or queries concerning our microsite, directory or social media
• Social platforms Facebook, Instagram or LinkedIn
• 01296 382 246
• If you would prefer to visit us in person please contact us by one of the above channels, let us know if you require any assistance or specific requirements when you visit and we will be happy to organise a meeting with you.

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 contact us with a complaint and you’re not happy with our response contact the Equality Advisory and Support Service (EASS).

The Buckinghamshire Family Information Service is committed to making its directories and microsite accessible, according to the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018.

This microsite is partially compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines version 2.2 AA standard, due to the following issues:

There are a number of accessibility features which we are not able to resolve due to the technical limitations with our directory and microsite.

Issues on our website and directory of services.

1. Inaccessible documents: Some of our PDFs and other documents are essential to providing our services. For example, we have PDFs, or links to PDFs, with information on how users can access our services, for statutory information and forms published as Word documents. Non-HTML documents published on or after 23 September 2018 must have an accessible format.
2. Text not included in an ARIA landmark
   Landmark roles provide information about page structure, and can help assistive technology users with in-page navigation. Having text outside of the landmarks will make it more difficult to navigate to for some visitors.
3. Skip to main content link is missing
   The first item reached by keyboard should be a link to the main content of the page. This link should be visible when receiving focus from the keyboard.
4. Interactive element does not meet minimum size nor spacing
   An adequate size and positioning of interactive elements are important so people with physical impairments or using touchscreens can interact with them without difficulty.

1. Online maps and mapping services
   Where online maps are an option in our directory and cannot be made accessible, we do provide essential information in an accessible digital manner as a text.
2. Container element is empty
   An empty container element can be confusing for users of assistive technology, such as screen readers. This fails the WCAG 2.2 success criteria 1.3.1 (Info and Relationships).
3. Hidden element has focusable content
   A page element with the attribute aria-hidden="true" contains focusable elements (elements that can receive focus from a keyboard).
4. Grouped form controls missing an accessible name
   When grouped form controls have an accessible name, it helps a screen reader user to make sense of a form. The accessible name is read out to the user and describes the purpose of related controls such as a set of options, credit card details, or an address.
5. Overuse of italics
   Text in italics is generally more difficult to read. It can be especially problematic for people with dyslexia.
6. Form field missing a label
   Unclear labels make form-filling harder for everyone.
7. Colour contrast does not meet the minimum requirement (part of the Family Hub Network flag)
   Text and background colours that conflict or have too little contrast between each other can cause readability issues for users who are colour vision deficient or have low vision (vision loss equivalent to approximately 20/40 vision).

The cookie banner is zoomed in at either 200% or 400% the banner is displayed with the following issues.

1. Some of the text does not resize to fit parts of the screen (WCAG 1.4.4 Resize Text)
2. Scrolling is needed to enable selection of options (WCAG 1.4.10 Reflow)
3. Keyboard navigation is limited making the content harder for users of assistive technology to understand, including navigating using a screen reader (WCAG 2.4.11 Focus Not Obscured)

Not applicable.

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 and statutory information, and forms published as Word documents.

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 other documents we publish will meet accessibility standards. Where we are unable to publish accessible documents we will provide alternative methods to access this information.

We plan to fix any remaining issues with documents or replace them with accessible HTML pages as we review the content on our website.

We do not plan to add captions to live video streams because live video is exempt from meeting the accessibility regulations.

Where we choose to feature third party content or functionality on our website, we are responsible for ensuring it meets accessibility standards. However, we are not responsible for the accessibility of third party platforms or content that is neither funded nor developed by us, or under our control. This includes:

• third party websites that we link to from this website and any of our other digital channels
• social media platforms
• data we supply to national databases
• third party content we are legally required to publish but is not in the control of the Buckinghamshire Family Information Service

We monitor accessibility using automated checks via Siteimprove and manual checks. We also test this website regularly with real users.

The test on our directory is carried out by our directory developers Storm Consultancy from 6 October 2025, previously TPX Impact

This statement was prepared on 4 March 2021. It was last reviewed on 18 September 2025.