Main content area
Accessibility statement for cps.gov.uk
This accessibility statement applies to the main CPS website (www.cps.gov.uk). It does not apply to the subdomains that control our contact form (contact.cps.gov.uk) or our Advocate Panels subdomain (cps.outsystemsenterprise.com).
This website is run by the Crown Prosecution Service. 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
- zoom in up to 300% without the text spilling off the screen
- navigate most of the website using just a keyboard
- navigate online forms using just a keyboard
- 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)
- skip to the main content when using a screen reader screen
We’ve also made the website text as simple as possible to understand. However, a large proportion of our text concerns legal guidance and definitions intended primarily for use by an audience of qualified lawyers, which we are obliged to publish in a form that is legally correct. We recognise that some of this text may therefore not be simple for everyone to understand. Where this text specifically refers to (e.g.) people with learning disabilities, we are committed to publishing Easy Read versions of the text.
AbilityNet has advice on making your device easier to use if you have a disability.
How accessible this website is
We know some parts of this website are not fully accessible:
- some older PDF documents are not fully accessible to screen reader software
- live video streams do not have captions
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:
- E-mail: cps.webmaster@cps.gov.uk
- Telephone: 020 3357 0918
We’ll consider your request and get back to you within 14 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:
- E-mail: cps.webmaster@cps.gov.uk
- Telephone: 020 3357 0918
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).
Contacting us by phone or visiting us in person
We provide a text relay service for people who are D/deaf, hearing impaired or have a speech impediment.
Our offices have audio induction loops, or if you contact us before your visit we can arrange a British Sign Language (BSL) interpreter.
The CPS Areas and headquarters are currently maintaining core business functions, while doing all we can to minimise in-person contact.
Please communicate with us by email, telephone and secure digital media wherever possible. Royal Mail and other post delivered to our offices will be checked periodically, but normal mail response times cannot be guaranteed. All hand deliveries must be made by appointment only.
Find out how to contact us.
Technical information about this website’s accessibility
The Crown Prosecution Service 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 2.1 AA standard, due to the the non-compliances and exemptions listed below.
Non-accessible content
The content listed below is non-accessible for the following reasons:
Non-compliance with the accessibility regulations
Some images do not have a text alternative, so people using a screen reader cannot access the information. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.1.1 (non-text content). We plan to add text alternatives for all images by September 2020. When we publish new content we’ll make sure our use of images meets accessibility standards. Some images which are included purely for decorative purposes contain unnecessary text alternatives, which can get in the way of the understanding of a person using a screen reader. These will be removed as soon as possible.
Content that is not within the scope of the accessibility regulations
PDFs and other documents
Some of our PDFs and Word documents are made available as an alternative to HTML forms to support people who would prefer these formats. For example, we have PDFs with information on how users can access our services, and forms published as Word documents. From September 2020, we plan to ensure that these are as accessible as possible or supersede them with accessible HTML pages.
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 CSV files or spreadsheets that we are legally obligated to publish periodically.
Any new PDFs or Word documents we publish will meet accessibility standards.
Live video
We do not plan to add captions to live video streams (if we use these) because live video is exempt from meeting the accessibility regulations.
What we’re doing to improve accessibility
We will audit the site to cover accessibility issues following any major changes to the functionality of the site. We will then audit the site once a year to identify and address any accessibility issues.
Preparation of this accessibility statement
This statement was prepared on Monday 21 September 2020. It was last reviewed on 21 September 2020.
This website was last tested on 7 September 2020. The test was carried out by CIVIC Computing Limited.
CIVIC ran an automated accessibility scanner (SortSite) across all pages of the site, to detect compliance with WCAG 2.1 (AA). This was followed by a manual accessibility audit of a representative sample of page and template types (8 pages plus the homepage) and was conducted using common browser and assistive technology pairs in accordance with https://design-system.service.gov.uk/accessibility/. The audit was carried out on desktop (using NVDA) and iPhone and iPad (using VoiceOver).
The next comprehensive accessibility audit is planned for early 2021. Once completed, this statement will be updated accordingly to reflect any amendments made.