Accessibility Statement for the Funding and Awards Website

This accessibility statement applies to the Funding and Awards website https://fundingawards.nihr.ac.uk/

This website is run by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). 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 browser or device settings
• zoom in up to 400% without the text spilling off the screen
• navigate most of the website using a keyboard or 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 simplified the text used on the website, using plain English wherever this is possible. Some of our content is technical, and contains scientific terms and language. In those instances, we have not been able to simplify the wording as this would change the meaning 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:

• Screen reader users may not be able to interact with certain elements as they may not be descriptive enough.
• Some of the colour combinations found on the site are low contrast and are likely to be difficult for people with low vision to read.

Feedback and contact information

If you find any problems not listed on this page or find other sections where you think we’re not meeting accessibility requirements, please email us: cbi@nihr.ac.uk.

If you need information on this website in a different format like accessible PDF, large print, easy read, audio recording or braille we will be happy to assist. Please email us at cbi@nihr.ac.uk.

We will consider your request and aim to get back to you within five working days.

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, please contact the Equality Advisory and Support Service (EASS).

Technical information about this website’s accessibility

The NIHR 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

The website has been tested against the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2 AA standard.

This website is partially compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines version 2.2 AA standard, due to the non-compliances and exemptions listed below.

Non-accessible content

Non-compliance with the accessibility regulations

• The search bar which is present on many pages across the site is currently missing a form label, which means that screen reader users may be unable to identify the purpose of this form. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 1.1. Non-text Content, 1.3.1 (Info and Relationships), 2.4.6 (Heading and Labels), 3.3.2 (Labels or Instructions).
• The search button alongside the search bar is empty and has no text value. This means screen reader users may be unable to identify the purpose and function of this button. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 1.1.1 (Non-text content), 2.4.4. (Link purpose).
• The footer of all pages across the site contains four social media icons with links which currently have no text alternative. This may cause confusion for keyboard users or screen reader users who may be unable to identify the function or purpose of the link. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 2.4.4 (Link purpose).
• Award pages currently have a very low contrast between the text and background on some headings. This may cause difficulty for users with low vision. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 1.4.3 (Contrast).
• The advanced search page is currently missing several labels against the form controls. This means screen reader users may be unable to identify the purpose and function of these form controls. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 1.1. (Non-text Content), 1.3.1 (Info and Relationships), 2.4.6 (Heading and Labels), 3.3.2 (Labels or Instructions).
• The index on the glossary page contains an empty link which has no text alternative. This link appears to be inactive at the front-end so should not impact user experience. Nevertheless, this fails WCAG 2.2. success criterion 2.4.4 (Link purpose).

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 currently reviewing our approach to provision of the Funding and Awards website to meet the WCAG 2.2 AA standards. We will update this statement when more information is available.

Preparation of this accessibility statement.

This statement was prepared on 25th March 2025.

The method for preparing this statement was self-assessment checking against WCAG 2.2 AA standards using tools-based testing of pages across multiple browsers.