Accessibility statement 

Accessibility statement for denbighshire.gov.uk

This website is run by Denbighshire County Council. It is designed to be used by as many people as possible. The text should be clear and simple to understand. You should be able to:

  • zoom in up to 300% without problems
  • navigate most of the website using just a keyboard
  • navigate most of the website using speech recognition software
  • use most of the website using a screen reader (including the most recent versions of JAWS, NVDA and VoiceOver)

AbilityNet has advice on making your device easier to use if you have a disability (external website).

How accessible this website is

We know some parts of this website are not fully accessible. For example:

  • website search results are not fully accessible when navigating using a keyboard only or using assistive technologies.
  • content and functionality provided by third party suppliers are not fully accessible.
  • some of our online forms are not fully accessible.
  • most older PDF documents are not fully accessible to assistive technology.
  • adverts include elements that are not accessible when navigating using a keyboard only or using assistive technology.
  • interactive maps are difficult to navigate using a keyboard only.
  • interactive maps do not include sufficient button labelling or colour contrast.

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, please contact us:

Alternatively, you can write to us at:

Denbighshire County Council,
PO Box 62,
Ruthin,
LL15 9AZ

We’ll consider your request and get back to you in 10 working days.

If you cannot view our ‘Contact us’ page, please call us on 01824 706000 for directions.

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, please contact our web team:

You can also submit your feedback using our customer feedback policy which is called Your Voice.

You can use this to let us know if:

  • you think we did something wrong or made a mistake;
  • you think we have done something well; or
  • you have a comment or an idea about how we could do something differently.

You can contact us:

  • via our website www.denbighshire.gov.uk;
  • by e-mail to your.voice@denbighshire.gov.uk;
  • by writing to Your Voice, Denbighshire County Council, PO Box 62, Ruthin, LL15 9AZ;
  • by phone 01824 706000; or
  • in person at any of our One-Stop Shops, libraries, leisure centres, receptions and public buildings.

We will normally respond in the same way that you contact us, but if you want us to respond in a different way please let us know.

We will always deal with your feedback openly and fairly and use it to improve our services.

If you are making a complaint, we will investigate using the Council’s complaints process.

This process will also advise you on how to access help to make a complaint and what to do if you feel that your complaint has not been responded to appropriately.

However, if you concern relates to website accessibility rather than general website issues then you may wish to investigate the enforcement procedure as set out in the next paragraph.

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) (external website).

Contacting us by phone or visiting us in person

Find out how to contact us.

Technical information about this website's accessibility

Denbighshire County Council is committed to making its website accessible, in accordance with the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018 (external website).

Compliance status

This website is partially compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines version 2.1 AA standard, due to the non-compliances listed below.

Non-accessible content

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

Non-compliance with the accessibility regulations

Third party applications

We are aware that the following third party systems do not comply fully with accessibility and usability standards as they are outside of our control:

  • Customer account system (myaccount.denbighshire.gov.uk)
  • Online forms (supplied by our Website Content Management System)
  • Geographical Information (Maps) system (maps.denbighshire.gov.uk)
  • Job vacancies applications system (workfor.denbighshire.gov.uk)
  • Payments system
  • Library catalogue system
  • Planning portal system (planning.denbighshire.gov.uk)
  • Committee minutes and agendas search and display system
  • Website search
  • Online maps
  • Text to speech application (launch pad)
  • Engagement and consultations system (countyconversation.denbighshire.gov.uk)
  • Council Tax portal system (connect.denbighshire.gov.uk)

Some parts of this website use embedded content provided by third party websites that are not fully accessible as they are outside of our control, including the following:

  • Website search
  • Embedded online maps
  • Trading standards advice pack builder
  • Webcasts
  • reCAPTCHA (Google) 

We are currently reviewing our third party applications and working with suppliers to improve the accessibility of these systems.

Adobe PDFs and Word documents

Some of our PDFs and Word documents published after 23 September 2018 do not meet accessibility standards - for example, they may not be structured so they're accessible to a screen reader. 

We aim to replace PDF and Word documents on our website with accessible HTML pages where possible.

When considering whether we can provide the information in an accessible format, we will assess:  

  • how much the work would cost and the impact that carrying out the work would have on us
  • how much users with a disability would benefit from us carrying out the work

Disproportionate burden

We have identified a limited number of PDF and MS Word documents published after September 2018 where the cost and/or time of publishing these documents in an accessible format would represent either:

  • a disproportionate burden within the meaning of the accessibility regulations; or 
  • a temporary disproportionate burden that we aim to fix.

Documents we have currently identified as a disproportionate burden include:

  • Statement of accounts (PDF)
  • Council Constitution (PDF)
  • Houses in Multiple Occupation public register (PDF)
  • bin collection date calendars (PDFs)
  • some spreadsheets (MS Excel documents)
  • Provisional Tree Preservation Order (TPO) documents
  • Human Resources system guides
  • Air Quality Progress Reports
  • Denbighshire schools information guide 2024-2025
  • Budget Books: 2022-2023 and 2023-2024

A number of application forms in PDF and MS Word format currently represent a disproportionate burden, however we aim to replace these forms with accessible, online versions of these.

Something which is a disproportionate burden now will not necessarily be a disproportionate burden forever. If circumstances change, we will re-assess whether we can provide our online information in an accessible format.

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

PDFs and other 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. For example, we do not plan to fix some of our annual scrutiny reports.

New PDFs or Word documents we publish will meet accessibility standards.

What we're doing to improve accessibility

We have developed and implemented a new corporate website with the primary aim of improving access to our online information and services. 

We introduced new accessible website document templates in October 2019 to ensure that online documents are accessible and can be used by as many people as possible, including those with disabilities.

We are working with all our third-party supplied systems to try to resolve any of their identified accessibility issues with their systems.

Our corporate priority of ‘connected communities’ will be achieved by ensuring that ‘Council information and services will be accessible online where possible’, as stated in our Corporate Plan.

Preparation of this accessibility statement

This statement was prepared on 3rd July 2020.

It was last reviewed on 27th May 2022. It was last updated on 27th May 2022.

This website was last tested in July 2020. The test was carried out by Denbighshire County Council. 

How we tested this website

We have tested our website for accessibility using a combination of automated tools, manual tests and assistive technologies.

We have used the following automated tools to test our website:

  • W3C validator
  • HTML 5 validator
  • Wave toolbar
  • Sortsite
  • ARC toolkit
  • Total validator
  • Axe
  • Web accessibility toolbar
  • Firefox browser (Accessibility checker)
  • Colour contrast analyser
  • SiteImprove

We have used the following assistive technologies to test our website:

  • Voiceover (A screen reader for Apple devices)
  • Non Visual Desktop Access (NVDA) (A screen reader) 
  • Narrator with Edge browser (Text to speech)
  • Speech recognition technologies including Siri and Windows 10 Speech Recognition
  • Screen magnification tools including Windows 10 Magnifier

We have used the following manual assessments to test our website:

If you are unhappy with any aspect of the website:

Website feedback

We'd like to hear your views on the new website.

Your feedback is really important as it will help us improve our online information and services.

Website feedback

Customer feedback policy: Your Voice

You can also submit your feedback using our customer feedback policy which is called Your Voice.

You can use this to let us know if:

  • you think we did something wrong or made a mistake;
  • you think we have done something well; or
  • you have a comment or an idea about how we could do something differently.

You can contact us:

  • via our website www.denbighshire.gov.uk;
  • by e-mail to your.voice@denbighshire.gov.uk;
  • by writing to Your Voice, Denbighshire County Council, PO Box 62, Ruthin, LL15 9AZ;
  • by phone 01824 706000; or
  • in person at any of our One-Stop Shops, libraries, leisure centres, receptions and public buildings.

We will normally respond in the same way that you contact us, but if you want us to respond in a different way please let us know.

We will always deal with your feedback openly and fairly and use it to improve our services.