Accessibility statement for www.bristol.ac.uk

This accessibility statement applies to content published on the www.bristol.ac.uk domain. It does not apply to subdomains or third-party systems with their own accessibility statements.

This website is run by the University of Bristol. 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 your browser or device settings
  • zoom in up to 400% without the page breaking
  • navigate most of the website using a keyboard alone
  • navigate most of the website using speech recognition software
  • listen to most of the website using a screen reader (including the most recent versions of JAWS, NVDA and VoiceOver)

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

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

On this page

How accessible this website is

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

  • some of our online forms are difficult to complete using a screen reader
  • some of our online forms are difficult to navigate using just a keyboard
  • some pages and document attachments are not written in plain English
  • some heading elements are not consistent
  • some images do not have image descriptions
  • many documents are in PDF format and are not accessible.

We will update the statement when we fix these issues, or when we can provide an expected date for a fix.

Feedback and contact information

If you need information on this website in a different format, use the 'Feedback' link at the bottom of the page in question.

In your message, include:

  • the web address (URL) of the content
  • your email address and name
  • the format you need for example, plain text, braille, BSL, large print or audio.

We'll consider your request and get back to you within 20 working days.

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, contact: web-editor@bristol.ac.uk.

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

The University of Bristol is committed to making its website accessible, in accordance with the accessibility regulations.

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-compliant for the following reasons.

Non-compliance with the accessibility regulations

Content fixes target: 31 April 2027

  1. Some images do not have alt text (WCAG 2.2, 1.1.1 Non-text Content). Work is currently underway.
  2. Some link text does not describe its purpose from the text and its surrounding context, such as a heading or sentence (WCAG 2.2, 2.4.4 Link Purpose (In Context)). Work is currently underway.
  3. Some form fields do not have proper labels (WCAG 2.2, 1.3.1 Info and Relationships / 3.3.2 Labels or Instructions).
  4. Some PDF documents do not have a descriptive title in their document properties (WCAG 2.2, 2.4.2 Page Titled).
  5. Some links are distinguished from surrounding text by colour alone (WCAG 2.2, 1.4.1 Use of Colour).
  6. Some pages have insufficient colour contrast, including the cookie consent banner (WCAG 2.2, 1.4.3 Contrast Minimum). 
  7. Some non-HTML documents (for example PDFs) are not available in a fully accessible format — covering structure, reading order and text alternatives within the document itself, not just the title. This is a general requirement of the accessibility regulations for documents published on or after 23 September 2018, rather than a single WCAG criterion.

Template and design system fixes target: 31 May 2027

  1. Some touch targets are too small or too close together (WCAG 2.2, 2.5.8 Target Size Minimum).
  2. Some heading levels are inconsistent or missing (WCAG 2.2, 1.3.1 Info and Relationships / 2.4.6 Headings and Labels).
  3. Some pages have incorrect landmark regions, and more broadly fail to give full structural context to assistive technology users (WCAG 2.2, 1.3.1 Info and Relationships). 
  4. Some pages have an illogical keyboard focus order (WCAG 2.2, 2.4.3 Focus Order).
  5. Some data tables are not marked up correctly (WCAG 2.2, 1.3.1 Info and Relationships).
  6. Some pages cannot be found through more than one type of navigation, for example search, a sitemap, or related links (WCAG 2.2, 2.4.5 Multiple Ways).

Technical fixes target: 31 June 2027

  1. Some pages do not have a page title (WCAG 2.2, 2.4.2 Page Titled).
  2. Some lists are not marked up correctly (WCAG 2.2, 1.3.1 Info and Relationships).
  3. Some pages do not have a valid page language set (WCAG 2.2, 3.1.1 Language of Page).
  4. Some frames/iframes do not have a descriptive title (WCAG 2.2, 4.1.2 Name, Role, Value). Work is currently underway.
  5. Some elements use ARIA incorrectly (WCAG 2.2, 4.1.2 Name, Role, Value).
  6. Some pages prevent users from zooming or scaling text (WCAG 2.2, 1.4.4 Resize Text / 1.4.10 Reflow).
  7. Some pages don't allow custom text spacing (WCAG 2.2, 1.4.12 Text Spacing).
  8. Some content and functionality cannot be operated using a keyboard alone (WCAG 2.2, 2.1.1 Keyboard).

PDFs and non-HTML documents

Many documents are not accessible in several ways, including missing text alternatives and missing document structure.

To report any problems or request documents in an alternative format, use the 'Feedback' link at the bottom of the page that links to the document in question.

Disproportionate burden

At present we do not claim disproportionate burden for anything. However this may change, following further review and testing.

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

What we're doing to improve accessibility

Since September 2020, staff who are new to web publishing must complete training to learn what they need to do to meet the WCAG 2.2 AA standard.

Staff who were already publishing web content before September 2020 are encouraged to access the same training.

Web Infrastructure and Governance project

We are working on a Web Infrastructure and Governance project until mid-2027. Part of this project will assess our current processes and technology roadmap to ensure accessibility standards are being met across our digital estate.

Project impact on accessibility

We will:

  • understand how we can consolidate and standardise our digital estate to better monitor and manage accessibility across digital products and services
  • audit our estate and remove legacy content where we can, reducing the amount of inaccessible content on our website
  • continue to roll out our design system across our digital estate to ensure each element is accessible from the outset.

Preparation of this accessibility statement

This statement was prepared on 27 September 2019. It was last reviewed on 08 October 2026.

This website was last tested on 28 September 2026. The test was carried out by the University's Digital Delivery team using Sitebulb, an automated auditing tool built on the Deque axe-core accessibility engine, covering the www.bristol.ac.uk domain alongside manual testing carried out using a sample of pages from the University website representing a variety of page templates and high impact pages. 

Automated testing identifies a substantial proportion of accessibility issues but cannot detect every barrier. Keyboard navigation, screen reader compatibility, reading order, and cognitive accessibility require manual testing, which is being considered and tested during this part of the review.