Online Accessibility Statement

This accessibility statement applies to the Plymouth College of Art website and staff / student portals.


This website is run by Plymouth College of Art. We want as many people as possible to be able to use this website. For example, that means you should be able to:

  • change colours, contrast levels and fonts

  • zoom in up to 300% without the text spilling off the screen

  • navigate most of the website using just a keyboard

  • use the site across multiple devices and browsers

  • 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)


This website’s default language is English (UK) and we have made the website text as simple as possible to understand. We recommend using your web browser’s in-built translation service to read our pages in another language. We recommend Google Translate (compatible with Chrome, Firefox and most devices).


Google's Accessibility site provides guides and resources to access the web and AbilityNet 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 not fully accessible:


  • Some video embeds may not include subtitles, but our recommended browser Google Chrome has built in video captioning for content. Alternatively we recommend toggling on Youtube and Vimeo’s closed captions. There is an option to obtain an auto-transcript via link on the video.

  • Some pages may not be suitable for keyboard users: Active Focus does not adequately highlight position on page.

  • There is no built in zoom function on the website but browser zoom functions can be used.

  • Legacy content such as downloadable PDFs may not be fully compatible with some screen reader software.

  • Some buttons may not meet the text to background contrast ratio of 4:5:1.

  • Some of our older PDF documents do not meet accessibility standards.


Reporting accessibility problems with this website


We are committed to improving accessibility for all on our College website and internal portals. If you find any problems not listed on this page or think we’re not meeting accessibility requirements, please email web@pca.ac.uk and state what issues you are reporting and what you would like us to do.


Feedback and Alternative Formats


If you need information on this website in a different accessible format like large print, easy read, audio recording or braille please contact web@pca.ac.uk. We’ll consider your request and get back to you in five working days.


If you cannot view our campus maps call or email us at web@pca.ac.uk for directions.


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).


Technical information about this website’s accessibility


Plymouth College of Art 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

The College website is not compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines version 2.1 AA standard, due to the exemption listed below.


Disproportionate burden


With our new external website in development and currently in Beta Mode it would be a nugatory task for the Digital Content Editor and external agency to audit the existing website only for it to be immediately superseded by the new website. Taking cost and time into account it was agreed that this would be a disproportionate burden. However, any changes to make it more accessible have been made where possible.


The College’s internal portals are partially compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines version 2.1, due to the non-compliances listed below.


Non-accessible content


The content listed below is non-accessible for the following reasons:


  • Some of our video content does not have captions. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.2.2 (captions (pre-recorded).

  • Some of our video content may not have an audio description or media alternative. This fails WCAG 1.2.3 (Audio Description or Media Alternative (pre-recorded).

  • Some parts of our internal pages are not fully navigable using just a keyboard. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 2.1.1 (Keyboard).

  • Some parts of our website may contain abbreviations specific to the education sector that a screen reader may not translate fully, and these continue to be reviewed. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 3.1.4 (abbreviations).

  • Some text does not have a contrast ratio of 4:5:1 with the background. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.4.3 (Contrast (Minimum)).


Non-compliance with the accessibility regulations


The content listed below is non-compliant for the following reasons:


  • Active Focus does not adequately highlight position on page.

  • Assistive technology, such as screen readers should be able to identify text that is highlighted or important but does not always do so.

  • Solution to these issues lies within the coding of the pages (through Google) that provide the College’s internal portal environment so cannot currently be rectified.


Content that’s not within the scope of the accessibility regulations


PDFs and other documents


Some of our older PDF or Microsoft 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 success criterion 4.1.2 (name, role value). Contact information has been provided to request an alternative format.


Work is underway to replace those areas not meeting the success criterion with alternative documents such as HTML pages when the new website is complete and by the end of January 2021.


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 or Google Document ‘view only’ will be used instead.


Live video


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


Third-Party Software


The external website utilises third-party plug-ins and widgets including Intercom Live Chat, Unibuddy, Casengo, and Mailchimp. Providers are selected with accessibility best practice in mind but WCAG 2.1 AA conformance for third-party content sits outside of the author’s control.


Virtual Tours


The College website features a 360 click and drag virtual tour of the college campus. Industry-wide there are currently no coherent tools to help screen readers navigate and launch hotspot content. Commissioning a bespoke solution would pose a disproportionate burden on the college and so users requiring an assisted tour of spaces throughout the college should contact liaison@pca.ac.uk to arrange an alternative format (e.g personal walk-through over video call).


What we’re doing to improve accessibility


Throughout 2020 the College has invested in the development of a new public website, improving CMS capabilities and user experience. The new website will have WCAG 2.1 best practice embedded to ensure users can effectively interact with all content. The external web developer and design agency, together with the College will ensure Perceivable, Operable, Understandable and Robust criteria is met through a combined approach of automated and manual in-house auditing. In the interim we are correcting high-priority issues on our ‘old’ pages and providing contact information for alternative format requests.


The new website, developed with the WCAG 2.1 Accessibility Guidelines in mind, is expected to be complete in October 2020 when it will be subject to a further in-house accessibility audit.


All video content on the internal website is being reviewed and transferred to auto-captioning for embedding.


As part of our continuous review cycle, internal website pages are reviewed and updated for accessibility. College staff receive development training to improving accessibility and students are being provided with guidance on how to use assisted software and design for accessibility.


How we tested this website


Plymouth College of Art’s websites were tested through September 2020. The test was carried out by the college, based on a sample of all site pages and with the assistance of individual departments using both manual testing and testing through Google Chrome Lighthouse. All flagged priority issues were investigated and addressed where possible.


This statement was prepared on 18 September 2020 . It was last reviewed on 23 September 2020.