Accessibility statement for FSA Local Authority Information Network (FSA LINK)

This accessibility statement applies to the Food Standards Agency Local Authority Information Network (FSA LINK) website. 

This website is run by the Food Standards Agency. 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 within your own browser settings  zoom in up to 400% without the text spilling off the screen 
•  navigate most of the website 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, TalkBack 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. 

How accessible this website is

We know some parts of this website are not fully accessible. You can see a full list of any issues in the Non-accessible content section of this statement.

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: 

• Email: FSALINK@food.gov.uk  
• Phone our Helpline: 0330 332 7149 (open 9am until 5pm, Monday to Friday) 

We'll consider your request and get back to you in 5 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:

• Email: fsa.communications@food.gov.uk 
• Phone our Helpline: 0330 332 7149 (open 9am until 5pm, Monday to Friday)

Read tips on contacting organisations about inaccessible websites. 

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).

If you are in Northern Ireland and are not happy with how we respond to your complaint you can contact the Equalities Commission for Northern Ireland who are responsible for enforcing the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018 (the ‘accessibility regulations’) in Northern Ireland. 

Technical information about this website’s accessibility

The Food Standards Agency 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 2.2 AA standard.

Non-accessible content

The content listed below is non-accessible for the following reasons.

Non-compliance with the accessibility regulations

Header

• The link to in the header fails WCAG 2.4.4 Link Purpose (In Context) because the visual style of the link does not clearly show where the link will take the user.
• The site language selector fails WCAG 1.4.1 Use of Color because the currently selected language is not relayed to screen reader users, as it is indicated only by a colour change.

Cookie Banner

• The cookie banner fails WCAG 2.4.6 Headings and Labels because the label “Got it!” on the Accept cookies button does not clearly describe the action you are taking.

Breadcrumb

• The breadcrumb navigation fails WCAG 1.3.1 Info and Relationships because the link to expand a duplicate, hidden breadcrumb menu is visible to screen reader users even when the full size breadcrumb menu is visible already.

Sign-up Process

• The “register for an account”, and “thank you” pages fail WCAG 2.4.2 Page Title because they do not have a title which accurately describes the purpose of, and the content on, that page.
• The privacy notice link and checkbox to accept the privacy policy fail WCAG 4.1.2 Name, Role, Value because they are not connected to a legend (a descriptive caption) which will be read out to screen reader users.
• The user details section in the sign-up process fails WCAG 1.3.1 Info and Relationships and WCAG 4.1.2 Name, Role, Value because some fields do not have an accessible name which clearly indicates to their purpose to all users including people using screen readers.
• The section for local authority staff to complete in the sign-up process fail WCAG 2.4.2 Page Title because the page title does not change to show that the page has reloaded with errors if the user’s attempt to submit this form fails.
• The section for lead officers to complete in the sign-up process fails WCAG 4.1.2 Name, Role, Value because the legend (descriptive caption) for this group of fields is not the first thing in the group.

Sign-in Page

• The sign-in process fails 4.1.3 Status Messages because after a user has submitted their email address, the notice informing them that an email has been sent to them is not announced to screen reader users.

Manage Account

• The manage my account page fails WCAG 4.1.2 Name, Role, Value and WCAG 2.4.4 Link Purpose (In Context) because there is an invisible and unused link present next to the ‘Log out’ link, which is read out to screen reader users, but does not do anything.

Search Page

• The search results page fails WCAG 2.4.3 Focus Order (A) because focus remains on the previously selected search result when using the “back” function to return to the search results, rather than taking the user back to the top of the page.
• The search results page fails WCAG 4.1.3 Status Messages (AA) because changes to the number of results returned, for example when filtering the search, are not announced to screen reader users.
• The filters for Type of Content and Nation on the Search page fail WCAG 4.1.2 Name, Role, Value because they are not connected to a legend (a descriptive caption) which will be read out to screen reader users.

PDF and other non-HTML Documents

• Some of our Word documents are essential to providing our services. For example, we have forms or older letters published as Word documents.
• Due to time and resource pressures, we sometimes must upload PDF documents that are not fully WCAG compliant when they are first published.

Disproportionate burden

At this time, we have not made any disproportionate burden claims.

Content that’s 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’re not essential to providing our services. 

Any new PDFs or Word documents we publish will meet accessibility standards.

What we're doing to improve accessibility

We are working on fixing the issues identified above in the following ways:

We aim to fix some of the website functionality and content issues by December 2025.

Preparation of this accessibility statement

This statement was prepared on 27 September 2024. It was last reviewed on 27 February 2024.  

This website was last audited on 18th December 2024. The test was carried out by the Digital Accessibility Centre (DAC).

We tested the service based on a user's ability to complete key journeys. Journeys were chosen on a number of factors including usage statistics, risk assessments and subject matter.