Accessibility statement for Library Catalogue Plus

Loughborough University Library is committed to making its website accessible, in accordance with the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018.

This statement applies to all content available on Library Catalogue Plus (including Articles Plus, and also known as VuFind), which can be accessed at https://vufind.lboro.ac.uk/.

Loughborough University's Accessibility Statement for Library Catalogue Plus is a live document, providing an open account of our current position. 

We want as many people as possible to be able to use Library Catalogue Plus and Articles Plus. This means you should be able to:

• Zoom in up to 400% without text spilling off the screen.
• Navigate most of the website using just a keyboard or speech recognition tools.
• Listen to most of the website using a screen reader (including the most recent versions of JAWS, NVDA and VoiceOver).

We know that some parts of this website are not fully accessible:

• Not all menus, links, buttons and other controls can be operated by keyboard.
• When using a keyboard to move through a page, you are not always able to tell where you are.

We're always looking to improve the accessibility of our websites. If you think there are accessibility requirements we've not met or addressed in the statement, please contact us via library@lboro.ac.uk.

If you need information on these websites in a different format or have a query, please contact us via library@lboro.ac.uk.

Please provide the web address (URL) of the page(s) in which you find the problem, a description of the issue and your name. We will consider your request and get back to you within ten working days.

The Equality and Human Rights Commision (EHRC) is responsible for enforcing the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018 (the 'accessibility regulations'). If you are not happy with how we respond to a complaint about accessibility, please let us know. If you remain unsatisfied, contact the Equality Advisory and Support Service (EASS).

These websites are partially compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines version 2.1 AA standard, due to the non-compliances listed below. This means the content in question is in scope of the regulations, but there’s an accessibility problem with it.

The content below is non-accessible for the following reasons.

Where we have content that is not yet accessible, we have an ongoing programme of work that will help us to reach compliance.

• Sections of content text disappear after reflow without being available via a disclosure widget (WCAG 1.4.10). We plan to add a disclosure widget (in the form of a hamburger menu) by September 2025 to meet accessibility standards. Users will then be able to access information during reflow.
  
  
• Border outline for certain focus elements do not conform to the 3:1 contrast ratio guidance which could make it difficult to identify for some users with visual impairments (WCAG 1.4.11, 2.4.7, 2.4.13). We plan to change the border outline by September 2025 to meet accessibility standards for users with visual impairments.

Our site uses and links to third-party content which the University does not design or control and therefore accessibility standards may vary. For more information, please see the section below on third-party content.

Our site links to third-party content and functionality which may direct you to a related service, a partner we work with, or supporting documentation. We cannot always guarantee its accessibility as we do not have direct control over these resources. Third-party content may therefore not comply with the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) Accessibility Regulations 2018). However, we will use all reasonable endeavours to work with the third party to improve accessibility where this impacts on our users.

We have an ongoing programme of work to address any accessibility issues that are highlighted by our self-assessments in accordance with the guidelines set out by the WCAG. We are continually working on our content and site structure and are finding ways to make the site easier to navigate.

We have invested in a Student Experience and Accessibility Librarian whose main focus is to introduce and actively review working practices with a focus on user needs and accessibility.

The University has adopted SensusAccess, a self-service document re-formatting tool. Using SensusAccess, students and staff can convert an electronic document to an alternative format. It is quick, easy to use, and completely free.

This statement was first prepared on 22 September 2020. It was last reviewed on 30 July 2024.

This website was last tested on 26 July 2024 against the WCAG 2.1 AA standard.

The test was carried out by Loughborough University Library through self-assessment using WCAG 2.1 AA standards and manual checks. The most viewed pages were tested using automated testing tools by our Web Team. A further audit of the website was carried out to the WCAG 2.2 AA standard.

We tested a sample of pages from this website using the Accessibility Insights for Web tool with the Google Chrome browser.

We will be using Silktide to improve our identification of accessibility and content issues ensuring we are able to address them in a more timely manner.

Loughborough University takes the following measures to ensure accessibility of Library Catalogue Plus:

• Include accessibility as part of our mission statement.
• Include accessibility throughout our internal policies.
• Integrate accessibility into our procurement practices.
• Appoint an accessibility officer and/or ombudsperson.
• Provide continual accessibility training for our staff.
• Assign clear accessibility goals and responsibilities.