Accessibility statement for ljmu.ac.uk
This accessibility statement applies to the www.ljmu.ac.uk website. It does not cover the following domains:
- https://360tour.ljmu.ac.uk
- https://www.astro.ljmu.ac.uk
- https://buyonline.ljmu.ac.uk
- https://issuu.com – LJMU publications
- https://www.jmsu.co.uk
- https://jobs.ljmu.ac.uk
- https://ljmualumnishop.com
- https://ljmuconnect.com
- https://www.ljmuisc.com
- https://ljmu.libcal.com
- https://ljmulibrary.wordpress.com
- https://ljmumediaproduction.com
- https://ljmu.primo.exlibrisgroup.com
- https://ljmustudentfutures.co.uk
- https://lsad.co.uk
- https://matterport.com – virtual video tours of LJMU campus, faculties and accommodation
- https://my.ljmu.ac.uk
- https://policies.ljmu.ac.uk
- https://researchonline.ljmu.ac.uk
- https://staffevents.ljmu.ac.uk
- https://theta360.com
- https://unical.ljmu.ac.uk
This website is run by LJMU, and we want as many people as possible to be able to use it. For example, that means you should be able to:
- change colours, contrast levels and fonts
- zoom in up to 400% without the text spilling off the screen
- 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 JAWS, NVDA, VoiceOver and TalkBack)
We are also working on making the website text easy to understand and aiming for a reading age of a 12-year-old.
Some of our content is technical. We use technical terms when there is no simple language that we could use without changing the meaning of the term.
The AbilityNet website has advice on making your device easier to use if you have a disability.
How accessible this website is
Most of this website is accessible. We know some parts of this website are not fully accessible:
- we have many old publication documents which are in PDF and Microsoft formats and have not been designed for accessibility
- we have some PDF documents that are designed for print and are not fully accessible
- live video streams do not have captions
- some content is embedded in our website, such as maps and videos, and you cannot easily scale these on screen
- content and functionality provided by third-party suppliers may not be fully accessible
- you cannot use this website easily if JavaScript is switched off
Feedback and contact information
If you need information on this website in a different format like accessible PDF, large print, easy read, audio recording or braille:
- email the Web Access Team
- write to Web Access, Brand and Design, LJMU, Rodney House, 70 Mount Pleasant, Liverpool L3 5UX.
We will consider your request and get back to you as soon as possible.
If you cannot view the map on our ‘How to get to and around LJMU’ page, call or email General Enquiries for directions.
Reporting accessibility problems with this website
We are 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 the requirements of the accessibility regulations, then please email the Web Access Team.
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
Liverpool John Moores University 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 website has been tested against the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2 AA standard.
This website is partially compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines version 2.2 AA standard, due to the non-compliances and exemptions listed below.
Non-accessible content
The content listed below is non-accessible for the following reasons.
Non-compliance with the accessibility regulations
Forms
Some of our forms do not have clear prompts. This fails the WCAG success criterion 1.3.1 Info and Relationship and 3.3.2 Labels or Instructions. We aim to resolve this by 30 June 2026.
We are checking that forms are clearly labelled. This is to comply with the WCAG success criterion 3.3.2 Labels or Instructions. We aim to resolve this by 30 June 2026.
Some of our forms have fields that do not assist users to auto-fill common and repeatable values. This fails the WCAG success criterion 1.3.5 Identify Input Purpose. We aim to resolve this by 30 June 2026.
We are checking that all forms can be used as intended. This is to comply with the WCAG success criteria 3.2.2 On Input. We aim to resolve this by 30 April 2026.
We are checking that forms suggest corrections where applicable. This is to comply with the WCAG success criterion 3.3.3 Error suggestion. We aim to resolve this by 30 April 2026.
Some form controls do not have sufficient contrast with their surroundings. This fails the WCAG success criterion 1.4.11 Non-text Contrast. We aim to resolve this by 30 June 2026.
Images
We believe we have removed unnecessary alternative text for images. We are checking images that have alternative text that is either duplicated or does not fully describe the image. This is to comply with the WCAG success criterion 1.4.5 Images of Text and with the WCAG success criterion 1.1.1 Non-text Content. We plan to resolve this by 31 December 2026.
We are checking that images of text are only used for decorative purposes. This is to comply with WCAG success criterion 1.4.9 Images of Text (No Exception). We aim to have resolved this by 31 July 2026.
Links
Some links use the same text for different destinations or do not indicate their purpose. This fails the WCAG success criterion 2.4.4 Link Purpose (In Context). We plan to resolve this through ongoing editing processes, and we aim to have it largely resolved by 31 July 2026.
Interactive elements
Some of our elements do not have clear prompts. This fails the WCAG success criterion 1.3.1 Info and Relationship. We aim to resolve this by 30 June 2026.
Some elements are not far enough apart. This fails the WCAG success criterion 2.5.8 Target Size (Minimum). We aim to resolve this by 30 June 2026.
Navigation and accessing information
Some user interface components do not name or announce content. This fails the WCAG success criterion 4.1.2 Name, Role, Value. We plan to resolve this by 30 June 2026.
We are checking that every page has functionality that is available by the keyboard. This is to comply with the WCAG success criterion 2.1.1 Keyboard. We aim to resolve this by 31 December 2026.
Some elements do not have sufficient descriptions. This fails the WCAG success criterion 2.4.1 Bypass Blocks. We aim to resolve this by 31 December 2026.
We are checking that every page has appropriate ways to get to the content. This is to comply with the WCAG success criterion 2.4.5 Multiple Ways. We aim to resolve this by 31 December 2026.
We are checking that navigation is consistent across sections of the website. This is to comply with the WCAG success criterion 3.2.3 Consistent Navigation and the WCAG success criterion 3.2.6 Consistent Help. We aim to resolve this by 31 December 2026.
Focus
The visible focus on some elements do not have enough contrast. This fails the WCAG success criterion 1.4.11 Non-text Contrast. We aim to resolve this by 30 June 2026.
Page content
A few page titles may not identify the contents or purpose of the web page. We are checking that every page has an appropriate title. This is to comply with the WCAG success criterion 2.4.2 Page Titled. We plan to resolve this by 31 December 2026.
Some elements have unclear relationships. This fails the WCAG success criterion 1.3.1 Info and Relationship. We aim to resolve this by 30 June 2026.
We are checking that every page has meaningful headings and labels. This is to comply with the WCAG success criteria 2.4.6 Headings and Labels and 1.3.1 Info and Relationship. We aim to resolve this by 31 December 2026.
We are checking that functional components are consistently identified in sets of pages. This is to comply with the WCAG success criterion 3.2.4 Consistent Identification. We aim to resolve this by 31 December 2026.
Not all our content reaches our target reading age of 12 years old. This fails the WCAG success criterion 3.1.5 Reading Level. We are resolving this with guidelines for new content and for content that is reviewed.
Assistive technologies
Some elements are not read properly by the screen reader. This fails the WCAG success criterion 2.4.1 Bypass Blocks. We aim to resolve this by 31 December 2026.
We are checking some elements for unnecessary parsing. This is to comply with the WCAG success criterion 4.1.1 Parsing (Obsolete and removed). We aim to resolve this by 31 December 2026.
Third-party content
Our websites contain third-party elements. These are external tools or content embedded within our website. We require that any new third-party systems commissioned by the university are Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.2 AA compliant.
We're responsible for ensuring the content we create meets accessibility requirements. However, we're not responsible for the accessibility of the platform itself, or content which has been created by a third party. This may include:
- interactive document reader platforms that convert accessible PDFs into a digital flipbook, such as Issuu
- video platforms that we link to embed, such as YouTube
- virtual tour video platforms, such as Matterport
- features within embedded maps, such as Google Maps
- content hosted on other websites, such as social media sites
For example:
- when we add video to one of our YouTube channels, we'll ensure any subtitling, captions and audio-description are included as required. However, we're not responsible for the accessibility of the video player itself
- when we add a PDF to a digital flipbook platform, we ensure that the PDF is as accessible as possible
We acknowledge the limitations posed by third-party content and seek to collaborate with the third party to discuss accessible alternatives.
Disproportionate burden
PDFs and other documents
Our site contains 1,233 PDFs and other documents created prior to 23 September 2018.
Since 23 September 2018, we have created or updated over 3,300 documents, and there has been more than 1million unique downloads for all file formats.
The top 0.75% (25) of PDF and Word documents account for almost 30% (294,989) of all downloads between 23 September 2018 and October 2022. These documents are accessible.
We are focused on ensuring that new documents required for essential services are accessible.
We will also ensure that documents addressing the needs of, or are meant for, people with disabilities are accessible.
We plan to fix other PDFs and documents as and when they are updated and republished. This includes PDFs and documents created prior to 23 September 2018 that are being updated.
We will not fix any other documents due to the disproportionate cost burden of fixing the documents considering the frequency that these documents are accessed.
We will publish any new PDFs or Word documents to meet accessibility standards.
Images
Our media library contains over 20,000 images. Some images had alternative text that was either duplicated, or unnecessary, or did not fully describe the image. We have worked our way through our media library and have completed the updates for the high traffic images.
We are focused on ensuring that new images are accessible.
We plan to fix other images as and when they are updated and republished. We will also check images when we update content on our pages.
We will not fix any other images due to the disproportionate cost burden of fixing the images considering the frequency that they are used.
Content that’s not within the scope of the accessibility regulations
PDFs and other documents
The accessibility regulations don’t require us to fix PDFs or other documents published before 23 September 2018 if they’re not essential to providing our services. For example, we don’t plan to fix old PDF newsletters that might still be published and accessed through our website.
Live video
We do not plan to add captions to live video streams because live video is exempt from meeting the accessibility regulations.
Embedded videos
The accessibility regulations don’t require us to fix prerecorded videos published before 23 September 2020.
What we’re doing to improve accessibility
We're working towards WCAG 2.2 AA compliance. We have introduced a programme of continual assessment with regular automated testing.
Preparation of this accessibility statement
This statement was prepared to meet regulatory standards on 19 October 2022.
Our previous accessibility statement was last updated on 2 February 2026. This accessibility statement was reviewed and published on 30 March 2026.
UserVision tested the website in the week commencing 12 July 2021. We tested a sample of representative pages and the approach also included automated testing.
This website was retested by UserVision in the week commencing 26 June 2023, who audited the original issues and other sample pages.
In January 2023, we introduced automated testing for a sample of 3000 pages. This was increased to 5000 pages in January 2024. The default automated testing occurs every 5 days. The audits are carried out to the WCG 2.2 standard.