Kent Data Repository accessibility statement

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Feedback and contact information

Please contact us if you have an accessibility query including:

• If you are experiencing issues with accessing information or using the website
• If you find an accessibility problem not listed on this statement
• If you have positive feedback on the accessibility considerations made. 

A process is being finalised so that when you contact us, we will acknowledge your contact, tell you who is dealing with it and give you a timescale by which you can expect a reply.

Find out more on the KDR web page. 

The material hosted on KDR is data collected by researchers and are in a range of different formats. Some of the material may not be accessible, for example audio or video recordings or data in specialist formats.

If you experience barriers, you can request alternative formats. 

For more information please contact us. 

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 the University of Kent’s webmaster to register your difficulty. This helps us improve our systems. 

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).

The University of Kent is committed to making this website and associated subdomains accessible, in accordance with the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018.

The website is partially compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) version 2.1 AA standard, due to the non-compliances and exemptions listed below.

We formally test the accessibility of key user journeys that represent the breadth of content across our website on a regular basis against WCAG 2.1 AA standards. 

Some parts of the website may not work for everyone. Below are known issues that we either need to fix, cannot fix, or do not need to fix right now.

If you find something that does not work that we missed, remember to contact us.

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

This section covers issues that we need to fix and are working to do so.

Empty Heading

Some headings are empty with no text content, instead they only have an image with embedded text. This means that the heading is inaccessible for screen reader users (WCAG: 2.4.6).

Form labels

Some of the form elements are missing labels which explain the type of content to enter (WCAG: 3.3.2 Labels or Instructions).

Page structure missing landmarks

Some of the pages have elements which are not contained in appropriate landmarks such as ARIA labels and HTML 5 tags (WCAG 1.3.1).

Mislabelled elements or missing labels

Some of the user interface elements, such as buttons and headings, do not have appropriate labels that define their roles. This includes labels which do not match the purpose and elements which do not have a label (WCAG: 4.1.2).

Focus does not shift to modals

Some of the modals do not have focus shift to them when they are opened (WCAG: 2.4.3).

Modal does not maintain keyboard focus

Some modal windows do not retain focus. This means that people using keyboard navigation or screen readers can’t navigate the modal. Instead they tab out of the modal and access content on the page behind it (WCAG 2.1.2).

Images without a full description 

Some images on our website don't have appropriate alternative text. The alternative text is short and does not provide an adequate summary (WCAG: 1.1.1).

Incorrectly tagged decorative images

Images which are purely decorative are not identified as such (WCAG 1.1.1).

Text styled to look like a heading but lacking appropriate HTML tag

Some of the text on the page has been styled to appear visually like a heading. This means emphasis is only visual and the heading is not defined with an appropriate HTML tag (WCAG: 2.4.6 and 1.3.1).

Issues with focus indicator 

Some elements may not always display effective focus indication (WCAG 2.4.7).

Links missing a role

Links do not have an appropriate role attribute to help screen readers identify them (WCAG: 4.1.2)

Links without meaningful purpose

Some of the links are not labelled clearly. This means that the links do not make sense when they are taken out of context, and for some links it is not possible to know what the purpose of the link is (WCAG: 2.4.4).

IDs are not unique

Some IDs are duplicated across the elements on the same page (WCAG: 4.1.1).

Lists incorrectly formatted

Some Lists and the items nested in them have not been created correctly. This can cause screen readers to not identify them properly (WCAG: 1.3.1).

KDR’s main function is as an archive.  It is designed to preserve files as they are and give access on Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable (FAIR) standards.

The files that are archived in KDR retain their original formatting so that they are interoperable with other systems.  This means that some of the file types are not accessible.  We actively ask depositors to consider uploading an accessible copy and in an open or standard format.

The files may be in formats which require specific third-party software to open them. We cannot guarantee the accessibility of these third-party applications. If you experience barriers, you can request alternative formats. For more information please contact us.

This section covers issues that we cannot fix right now. We’ve assessed the cost of fixing these issues but believe that doing so would be a disproportionate burden within the meaning of the law.

Not applicable.

This section covers issues that we do not need to fix right now. The law calls these exemptions.

Not applicable.

The material hosted on KDR are research data collected by researchers and are in a range of different formats. Some of the material may not be accessible, for example audio or video recordings or data in specialist formats.

The material may be in formats which require specific third-party software to open the files. We cannot guarantee the accessibility of these third-party applications. If you experience barriers, you can request alternative formats. For more information please contact us.

KDR also contains resources created by third parties that we may be unable to influence

KDR is a University of Kent application based on the open source EPrints project. Some issues within KDR may not be within our immediate control.

To help accessibility compliance across the sector, the University of Kent supports searchBOX, a centralised, independent directory of third-party accessibility information. 

SearchBOX catalogues the contact information and accessibility statements of third-party suppliers, enables the sharing of community-generated accessibility statements, and allows users to map their supplier ecosystem. 

Users can access third-party accessibility statements using the free searchBOX Finder service. 

The University of Kent encourages all our partners and suppliers to support this effort by ensuring that their accessibility information is included in the searchBOX directory.

This statement was prepared on 28 June 2020. It was last reviewed on 12 April 2022.

This website was last tested on 28 June 2020. The test was carried out by University of Kent.