Accessibility
This website strives to meet WCAG 2.1 Level AA. This statement applies exclusively to this website. If something here does not work for you, that is a fault we want to know about — and one we will fix.
The standard we build to
We target Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.1, Level AA, which includes everything in Level A and everything in WCAG 2.0. It is the standard referenced by Section 508 and by most education and public sector purchasing.
What that means in practice
- Everything on this site can be operated from a keyboard alone, including buying a subscription
- Focus is always visible, so you can see where you are
- Text contrast meets or exceeds the required ratio throughout
- Pages reflow to 400% zoom without horizontal scrolling
- Form errors are described in words, never signalled by color alone
- Status messages reach screen readers without stealing focus
- Movement is reduced automatically if your device asks for it
- The site works on phones, tablets and Chromebooks in every current browser
How we check
Automated scanning catches roughly a third of real accessibility problems, so it is where we start rather than where we stop. Every release is also tested by keyboard alone, with particular attention to the school search and the checkout — the two places where a failure would stop someone buying.
We do not use an accessibility overlay
Deliberately. Overlay widgets that promise automatic compliance do not deliver it, and disabled users consistently report that they make sites harder to use rather than easier. We would rather build the site properly.
Tell us when we get it wrong
No site is perfect, and the fastest way we find problems is someone telling us. If you hit something that does not work — a control you cannot reach, text you cannot read, a step you cannot complete — please say so.
It helps if you can tell us the page, what you were trying to do, and what you use to browse: a screen reader and its version, keyboard only, magnification, or a phone. None of that is required, though. Tell us what happened and we will work it out.