Accessibility statement

What standard does this site aim for?

The target is the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines version 2.2 at level AA. That target is self-assessed. No independent audit has been commissioned, and this statement says so rather than implying a certification that does not exist.

The Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018 apply to public sector bodies and therefore do not apply to this site (legislation.gov.uk). What does apply to any service provider is the duty under the Equality Act 2010 to make reasonable adjustments so that a disabled person is not put at a substantial disadvantage (legislation.gov.uk, section 20). This statement is published because that duty is anticipatory, not because a complaint has been made.

What has been done?

Every input in every calculator has a visible label, and every hint or unit note is tied to its input so that a screen reader reads the hint as part of the field rather than as loose text.
Every result that changes as figures are entered is announced. A screen reader user hears the new take-home pay without having to hunt for it.
Every table is keyed on its first column, and that cell is marked as the header for its row, so a figure is announced with the band or the year it belongs to rather than on its own.
Headings run in order without skipping a level, because heading navigation is how most screen reader users move through a long page.
Nothing depends on colour alone. Text meets the level AA contrast ratio in both the light and the dark theme, and the site follows the theme set in the operating system unless it is changed.
Every page works with the keyboard alone, including the calculators, and the focus outline is left visible.
Pages are plain HTML and the figures for the default entries are already in the markup, so a page still shows worked figures and its rate tables when a script fails to load, although the inputs will not recalculate. A page prints legibly, with the address behind each link shown.
Motion respects the reduced motion setting.

What is known to fall short?

Two specific limits are known. Wide rate tables scroll sideways on a narrow screen, which is workable but not comfortable. Some guides carry long tables where the surrounding text, rather than a caption, states what the table shows. Other barriers may remain and have not yet been found.

How can a barrier be reported?

Anything that cannot be read, reached or operated should be reported to enquiries.csr@gmail.com, naming the page and what happened. Reports are answered, and a fix that is within reach is made promptly rather than held for a release. Where a page cannot be used at all, the figure asked for will be worked out and sent by reply.

Anyone unhappy with the response may contact the Equality Advisory and Support Service, which advises on discrimination in England, Scotland and Wales (equalityadvisoryservice.com). In Northern Ireland the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland performs that role (equalityni.org).