This accessibility statement applies to www.ncic.nhs.uk website.

We are committed to providing an accessible website that is easy to use by anyone, whatever their age, background, access device or level of ability/disability.

This website is run by North Cumbria Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust. 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 using browser or device settings
  • zoom in up to 400% without the text spilling off the screen
  • navigate most of the website using a keyboard or speech recognition software
  • listen to most of the website using a screen reader (including the most recent versions of JAWS, NVDA and VoiceOver)

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

How to make your device easier to use

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

This includes how to:

How accessible this website is

This website was built in 2019 to ensure the pages were as accessible as possible. The content was reviewed to remove outdated and non-essential content and the remaining content re-written for ease of reading. We removed the use of accessibility overlays that can cause issues for screen readers and prioratised making an accessible website. In 2023 we converted over 200 PDF of our patient information into HTML pages to make them fully accessible.

The site is tested to meet Web Content Accessibility Guidelines but we are aware that it currently only partially meets the AA standards. We are working to fully meet this standard.

However, we know some parts of this website are still not fully accessible:

  • Board papers are published in PDF format and are in most cases created by combining multiple (unchecked) documents, some of which NCIC has not been the author. During 2024 we are working to resolve this issue so these papers are compliant. Contact: communications@NCIC.nhs.uk to make any requests for document that do not work with assistive technology.
  • Disclosure logs are published in Word format and are tested for accessibility. However we are working to reduce use of Word documents.
  • Automated testing has identified some instances of missing alt tags.
  • Manual testing has identified some instances of images not having meaningful alt text.

Where we link to other websites and resources, we do not check the accessibility for these, which are not within our control to change. If you are directed to a site outside www.ncic.nhs.uk the website will have it's own accessibility​​​​​​​ statement.

Feedback and contact information

If you find any problems not listed on this page or think we’re not meeting accessibility requirements, contact: communications@ncic.nhs.uk.

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

Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) Open Monday to Friday, 9am to 4pm (not including bank holidays)

  • email interpreters@ncic.nhs.uk
  • call 01228 603187 or 01228 608004
  • Freephone: 0800 633 5547
  • Write to: PALS, Cumberland Infirmary, Newtown Road, Carlisle, CA2 7HY

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

North Cumbria Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust 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

This website is partially compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines version 2.2 AA standard, due to the non-compliances listed below.

Non-accessible content

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

  • Carousels on the homepage and internal pages as they programmatically:
    • autoplay without the option to pause – this fails WCAG 2.1A 2.2.1 (Enough Time)
    • loop, therefore causing screen reader software and keyboard navigation to loop through 2-3 times – this fails WCAG 2.1A 1.3.2 (Meaningful Sequence)
  • Automated Service and Consultant searches that automatically change content on input without making the user aware, failing WCAG 2.1A 3.2.2 (On Input)
  • Various elements throughout the site where browser default focus outlines are difficult to interpret against design of said element or elements behind, failing WCAG 2.1AA 2.4.7 (Focus Visible)

Non-compliance with the accessibility regulations

Some images don’t have a text alternative, so the information in them isn’t available to people using a screen reader. This doesn’t meet WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.1.1 (non-text content). We will test for this issue in February 2023 and correct all flagged errors to meet the criteria including checking that current alternative test is meaningful.

Carousels across the website are programmed to automatically loop through their contents. By autoplaying without an option for users to manually pause, this fails WCAG 2.1A 2.2.1 (Enough Time). By looping through their contents, the carousel lacks meaningful, programmatic sequence to screen readers and keyboard users. This causes them to loop through the carousel content 2-3 times, more than semantically intended once, therefore failing WCAG 2.1A 1.3.2 (Meaningful Sequence). We are discussing this issue with our supplier.​​​​​​​

On the ‘services’ and ‘consultants’ pages of the website, there are searches which automatically searches upon user input, reloading the page content beneath. As such, the user does not have to click the ‘Submit search’ present at the bottom of the form. The user is unaware of, and unable to prevent such automated behaviour, as they are not alerted prior. This fails WCAG 2.1A 3.3.2 (On Input). We are discussing this issue with our supplier.​​​​​​​

Although PDF and Word Documents that are uploaded to the website are tested for accessibility and issues corrected, some documents do not fully meet the highest standards. These include Board papers that are created by combining multiple (unchecked) documents, some of which NCIC has not been the author. During 2024 we are working to resolve these issues so document are complaint. Our Disclosure logs are checked and uploaded in Word format to make them accessible but we are working to phase out this format and implement a HTML template for these documents in 2024. 

Navigation and accessing information

Skiplinks are used to allow users to skip repeated headers.

What we’re doing to improve accessibility

We aim to fix any issues that are identified by our testing as soon as possible. If a prompt fix is not possible, we will plan a longer-term solution to address the issue.

We have a programme of work in place to address the accessibility of our PDFs and documents. We have allocated new staff specifically for this programme.

We have increased the training and support available to our staff to help them create accessible content.

Preparation of this accessibility statement

This statement was prepared on 1st October 2019. It was last reviewed on 12th December 2023.

This website was last tested in December 2023.

The test was carried out by NCIC communications team. The site was tested using automated testing tools (Accessibility Checker, A11y Colour Contrast Accessibility Validator) by our website team. A further audit of most viewed pages of the website was carried out to the WCAG 2.2 AA standard.

NCIC manually test key pages annually of most viewed pages and sample pages, including:

  • keyboard accessibility
  • images not having meaningful alt text
  • link text that's not descriptive
  • online forms not being marked up correctly
  • colour contrast

The site is checked by our supplier when new features are implemented.