Skip to main content Skip to footer

Accessibility statement for Get help to buy food and milk (Healthy Start)

This accessibility statement applies to Get help to buy food and milk (Healthy Start).

This website is run by the NHS Business Services Authority. 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 400% without the text spilling off the screen
  • navigate most of the website using just a keyboard 
  • navigate most of the website using just a speech recognition software (including the most recent versions of Dragon and Voice control)
  • listen to most of the website using a screen reader (including the most recent versions of NVDA 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, as:

  • timeouts do not pop up on the webpage after 30 minutes of inactivity
  • screen readers do not read the NHS logo and link banner correctly
  • you cannot open the ‘Find out more about call charges’ link using VoiceOver
  • to input a National Insurance number, users of speech recognition software would need to read out the entire label wording
  • many features on the website need to be accessibility-reviewed to make sure they’re implemented correctly for users with accessibility needs
  • the structure of the website screens needs to be reviewed to make sure they meet accessibility guidelines
  • the use of Accessible Rich Internet Applications (ARIA) and alerts on the website needs to be reviewed to make sure they meet accessibility guidelines

How to request content in an accessible format

If you need information on this website in a different format like accessible PDF, large print, easy read, audio recording or braille, you can contact us by:

Email: accessibility@nhsbsa.nhs.uk

We’ll consider your request and get back to you in 5 working days. 

These contact details are only for accessibility queries. This inbox is not for technical queries or IT problems. If you have a query that's not about accessibility, visit our Contact us page.

Reporting accessibility problems with this website

We’re always looking to improve the accessibility of this website. If you find any problems that aren’t listed on this page or think we’re not meeting accessibility requirements, you can contact us by:

Email: accessibility@nhsbsa.nhs.uk

This inbox is only for accessibility queries. This inbox is not for technical queries or IT problems. If you have a query that's not about accessibility, visit our Contact us page.

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).

Contact us

For all queries not accessibility related, you can contact us by:

Email: healthystart@nhsbsa.nhs.uk

Technical information about this website’s accessibility

NHS Business Services Authority 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 non-compliances listed below.

Non-accessible content

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

Non-compliance with the accessibility regulations

Timeouts do not pop up on the webpage after 30 minutes of inactivity. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 2.2.6 (Timeouts).

Screen readers do not read the NHS logo and link banner correctly. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.4.5 (Images of Text).

You cannot open the ‘Find out more about call charges’ link using VoiceOver. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 2.4.4 (Meaningful links).

To input a National Insurance number, users of speech recognition software would need to read out the entire label wording. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.3.6 (Identify Purpose).

Many features on the website need to be accessibility-reviewed to make sure they’re implemented correctly for users with accessibility needs.

The structure of the website screens needs to be reviewed to make sure they meet accessibility guidelines.

The use of Accessible Rich Internet Applications (ARIA) on the website needs to be reviewed to make sure they meet accessibility guidelines.

We plan to fix these accessibility issues. When we publish new content, we’ll make sure it meets accessibility standards.

What we’re doing to improve accessibility

We’re committed to making sure this website is compliant to WCAG 2.1 ‘AA’ standard.

Every new released website will be designed, built and tested to meet ‘AA’ standards by default.

Preparation of this accessibility statement

This statement was prepared on 28 August 2020. It was last reviewed on 30 June 2023.

This website was last tested on 17 May 2023. The test was carried out by NHSBSA test and front-end development teams.

We tested all of the website screens to meet ‘AA’ WCAG 2.1 standards, using manual and automated tests.

We run each webpage through automated Wave, Lighthouse and Axe accessibility tools then manually test with screen readers (NVDA or VoiceOver) and standards checklists.

We run representative user journey tests through speech recognition software (Dragon or Voice Control).

These checklists contain standards that have been compiled using WCAG, the NHS service manual and the Government Digital Service (GDS) guidance.