The Open College of the Arts is committed to making its websites and mobile applications accessible, in accordance with the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018.
This accessibility statement applies to the OCA website. This website is run by OCA, and hosted by Splitpixel. We want as many people as possible to be able to use our websites and mobile apps, and accessibility is an essential part of our mission. In our Student Accessibility Policy you’ll find everything you need to answer any questions you have about accessibility, whether you’re a student or a member of staff.
The bullet points below list what the OCA website should be able to do as a minimum.
To adapt the content to your needs or preferences you should be able to:
- Change colours, contrasts levels and fonts.
- Resize text up to 200% without impact on the functionality of the website.
- Zoom in up to 400% without loss of information or functionality.
- Navigate the website using just a keyboard.
- tab to ‘Skip to content’ links at the top of the page to jump over repetitive information to the main content.
- tab through the content; the current location will be indicated by a clear visual change.
- control the embedded media player to play audio and video materials.
- Use a screen reader (e.g. JAWs, NVDA) to:
- listen to the content of web pages and use any functionality on the page.
- list the headings and subheadings in the page and then jump to their location on the page.
- bring up a list of meaningful links on the page.
- Use transcripts or closed captions with most audio and video materials.
- Download learning materials in alternative formats (e.g. Word document, PDF, ePub).
- AbilityNet also provides advice on making your device easier to use if you have a disability.
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This website is partially compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines version2.2 AA standard, due to the non-compliance(s) and/or the exemptions listed below.
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The majority of content elements in our website are accessible and do not contain the problems below. This has been confirmed by testing and auditing.
The content listed below is non-accessible for the following reasons.
Non Compliance with the Accessibility Regulations
- Inconsistent link text for same destinations. This fails WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 3.2.3 Consistent Navigation (Level AA) and will be resolved by the end of July 2025.
- Inconsistent use of punctuation. This does not meet best practice.
- If text on the site is re-sized this can affect the placement of buttons, interrupting text. This fails WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 1.44 Resize Text (Level AA) and will be resolved by the end of July 2025.
- The Basket Icon (view your shopping cart) is not identified as an image, only a link, which may be confusing. This fails WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 1.1.1 Non-text content (Level A) and will be resolved by the end of July 2025.
- Incorrect keyboard focus/reading order. This fails WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 2.4.3 Focus Order (Level A) and will be resolved by the end of July 2025.
- Unclear labels for page numbers in Pagination Controls. This fails WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 2.4.6 Headings and Labels (Level AA) and will be resolved by the end of July 2025.
- Links without descriptive text. This fails WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 2.4.4 Link Purpose (In Context) (Level A) and will be resolved by the end of July 2025.
- Insufficient colour contrast for links. This fails WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 1.4.3 Contrast (Minimum) (Level AA) and will be resolved by the end of July 2025.
- Lack of visible keyboard focus. This fails WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 2.4.7 Focus Visible (Level AA) and will be resolved by the end of July 2025.
- Lack of announced states for collapsible elements. This fails WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 4.1.2 Name, Role, Value (Level A) and will be resolved by the end of July 2025.
- Lack of visible keyboard focus on “Contact OCA” link. This fails WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 2.4.7 Focus Visible (Level AA) and will be resolved by the end of July 2025.
- Form contained within a list item. This fails WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 1.3.1 Info and Relationships (Level A) and will be resolved by the end of July 2025.
- Lack of programmatic association between group controls and group labels. This fails WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 1.3.1 Info and Relationships (Level A) and will be resolved by the end of July 2025.
- Nested interactive controls. This fails WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 4.1.2 Name, Role, Value (Level A) and will be resolved by the end of July 2025.
- Lack of semantic headings. This fails WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 1.3.1 Info and Relationships (Level A) and will be resolved by the end of July 2025.
- Improper carousel implementation for keyboard and screen reader users. This fails WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 2.4.3 Focus Order (Level A) and will be resolved by the end of July 2025.
- Animations without user control. This fails WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 2.2.2 Pause, Stop, Hide (Level A) and will be resolved by the end of July 2025.
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The following types of content may not always be accessible, and they are not included within the scope of the accessibility regulation.
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Wherever possible we provide transcripts for audio, and captions, audio descriptions and transcripts for video. Sometimes these alternatives are not available. Pre-recorded time-based media published before 23rd September 2020 is exempt from meeting the accessibility regulations.
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Adding captions to all live video streams is exempt from meeting the accessibility regulations.
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PDFs or other documents that are not essential to providing our services and were published before 23rd September 2018 are exempt from meeting the accessibility regulations. We are working to ensure that any new PDFs or other documents that we publish will meet accessibility standards.
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Online maps and mapping services are exempt from meeting the accessibility regulations.
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Content published on an intranet or extranet (such as WeAreOCA) that is published before 23rd September 2019 is exempt from meeting the accessibility regulations, unless a major revision is made to the content after this date.
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Third party content that is not funded, developed by, or under the control of OCA is exempt from meeting the accessibility regulation
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This statement was prepared on 6th January 2025. It was last reviewed in January 2025.
The OCA websites were tested between March and June 2024. The tests were carried out by Accessibility and Usability Evaluation team at the Open University on a sample of pages from highly visited sites.
The pages were chosen to be representative of different types of content and platform, and high traffic pages. Each sample page was tested against all of the WCAG 2.2 AA criteria using a combination of manual and automated test methods. Test methods included:
- Keyboard-only testing
- Testing with a screen reader (Non-Visual Desktop Access, NVDA)
- Axe browser extension for Chrome
- Siteimprove browser extension for Chrome
- Color Contrast Analyser Tool from the Paciello Group
- Validating code using the W3C Validator tool.
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If you need information on this website in a different format like accessible PDF, large print, easy read, audio recording or braille:
- email webupdates@oca.ac.uk
- call 01226 978330
We will consider your request and get back to you within 10 working days. If you are a student and need support, please remember to include your student ID number and contact details so we can get back to you.
We are always looking to improve the accessibility of this website. If you discover a problem, not already listed above, or you think we’re not meeting the requirements of the current accessibility regulations (Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018), please contact us using the details listed above.
We will ask you for the web address (URL) of the page and a description of the problem. We will also ask for your name and email address so that we can contact you about your feedback. You should expect to hear back from us within 10 working days.
If you are a student, or someone who has had contact with OCA before, and have a complaint about the accessibility of our websites, you should raise a complaint via the Student Complaints Policy.
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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 are based in the UK, and you’re not happy with how we respond to your complaint, contact the Equality Advisory and Support Service (EASS).