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Accessibility Statement

This accessibility statement applies to the North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service website: (www.northyorksfire.gov.uk)

North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service is committed to making its website accessible to as many people as possible. 

This means you should be able to: 

  • change colours, contrast levels and fonts using your browser settings 
  • zoom in up to 300% without text running off the screen 
  • navigate most of the website using only a keyboard 
  • navigate most of the website using speech recognition software 
  • listen to most of the website using a screen reader, including the latest versions of JAWS, NVDA and VoiceOver 

We also aim to make our content clear and easy to understand. 

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

Access keys 

An access key is a keyboard shortcut that allows you to navigate a website without using a mouse. 

The following access key is available throughout this website: 

  • 1 – Go to the homepage 

On Windows computers, access keys can usually be used by pressing Alt and the access key. On Apple devices, access keys can usually be used by pressing Control + Option and the access key. 

We have followed UK Government guidance when assigning access keys and have tried to avoid conflicts with common operating system shortcuts. 

How accessible this website is 

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

For example: 

  • most older PDF documents are not fully accessible to screen reader users 
  • older videos do not have captions or transcripts 
  • some pages and documents are not written in plain English 
  • some images do not have suitable alternative text descriptions 
  • some PDF documents within the Freedom of Information Disclosure Log are not fully accessible 
  • some accessibility limitations may exist within third-party services such as Google Maps and Google reCAPTCHA 

Feedback and contact information 

If you need information from this website in a different format, such as: 

  • an accessible PDF 
  • large print 
  • easy read 
  • an audio recording 
  • braille 

please contact us: 

Email: capabilities@northyorksfire.gov.uk 

Telephone: 01609 780150 

Online: Use our website feedback form. 

We will consider your request and aim to respond within seven working days. 

Reporting accessibility problems with this website 

We are always looking for ways to improve the accessibility of our website. 

If you find an accessibility problem that is not listed on this page, or you think we are not meeting accessibility requirements, please contact: 

Communications Team
Email: media@northyorksfire.gov.uk 

Or write to: 

Communications Team
North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service Headquarters
Alverton Court
Northallerton
DL6 1FE 

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. 

If you are not satisfied with how we respond to your complaint, you can contact the Equality Advisory and Support Service (EASS). 

Technical information about this website’s accessibility 

North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service is committed to making its website accessible in line 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 (WCAG) 2.2 AA standard because some parts of the website are not fully accessible.  

Non-accessible content 

Images and alternative text 

Some images on webpages and in documents do not have suitable alternative text descriptions. This means people using screen readers may not be able to access all the information shown in those images. 

This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 1.1.1 (Non-text Content). 

Plain English 

Some webpages and documents are not written in plain English. 

This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 3.1.5 (Reading Level). 

Freedom of Information Disclosure Log documents 

We are aware that some PDF documents published within the Freedom of Information Disclosure Log are not fully accessible. 

Our review found that some documents may have missing accessibility tags, missing language settings or structural issues that can affect how screen readers interpret the content. 

These issues may fail WCAG 2.2 success criteria 1.1.1 (Non-text Content), 1.3.1 (Info and Relationships) and 1.3.2 (Meaningful Sequence).  

Video transcripts 

Some older videos do not have transcripts available alongside them. 

This may fail WCAG 2.2 success criterion 1.2.1 (Audio-only and Video-only (Prerecorded)). 

Third-party services 

Some parts of our website rely on third-party services, including Google Maps and Google reCAPTCHA. 

We are not able to control the accessibility of these services and some accessibility limitations may exist. These services are used to provide mapping and security features on the website. 

Content that is not within the scope of the accessibility regulations 

PDFs and other documents 

The accessibility regulations do not require us to fix PDFs or other documents published before 23 September 2018 if they are not essential to providing our services. 

For example, we do not plan to update older corporate documents that are no longer actively used. 

Where possible, any new PDFs, Word documents and other downloadable documents we publish will meet accessibility standards. 

Live video 

We do not plan to add captions to live video streams because live video is exempt from the accessibility regulations. 

What we’re doing to improve accessibility 

We are committed to improving the accessibility of our website and making information easier for everyone to use. 

Recent improvements include: 

  • improving page structure for screen reader users 
  • improving navigation labels and headings 
  • improving keyboard accessibility and focus indicators 
  • improving website search functionality 
  • fixing accessibility issues affecting mobile users 
  • improving content formatting on a range of webpages 
  • carrying out additional accessibility testing across website page templates  

Following these improvements, testing confirmed that issues relating to page landmarks, navigation structure and keyboard accessibility had been resolved on the pages tested.  

We continue to: 

  • review and improve alternative text for images 
  • improve the use of plain English across the website 
  • replace PDF documents with accessible webpages where appropriate 
  • improve the accessibility of Freedom of Information documents 
  • ensure new content meets accessibility standards wherever possible 

We are also reviewing the long-term accessibility of Freedom of Information documents and aim to complete this work by July 2027 

Preparation of this accessibility statement 

This statement was first prepared on 25 May 2021. 

It was last reviewed on 6 October 2026. 

Testing of the website 

This website was most recently tested in September 2026 by Urban River Creative against the WCAG 2.2 AA standard. Testing included automated and manual accessibility checks using Axe, Lighthouse and manual testing methods.  

The following pages were tested: 

  • https://www.northyorksfire.gov.uk/ 
  • https://www.northyorksfire.gov.uk/your-safety/safe-outside/fireworks-and-bonfire-night/ 
  • https://www.northyorksfire.gov.uk/news/ 
  • https://www.northyorksfire.gov.uk/safety-advice-for-halloween/ 
  • https://www.northyorksfire.gov.uk/contact/ 
  • https://www.northyorksfire.gov.uk/contact/ask-us-a-question-form/  

These pages were chosen because they represent the main page types, templates and user journeys used throughout the website.  

After the audit was completed, accessibility improvements were made and testing was repeated across 16 pages covering all page templates used on the website. This testing confirmed that previously identified issues relating to landmark regions and navigation landmarks had been resolved on the pages tested. 

Testing included checks of: 

  • page structure and landmarks 
  • headings and heading hierarchy 
  • keyboard navigation 
  • forms and search functions 
  • navigation menus 
  • mobile responsiveness 
  • compatibility with assistive technologies 
  • key user journeys across the website.  

This approach was taken because the website is built using a range of templates and components. Testing these representative pages provided coverage of the components used throughout the rest of the website.