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Accessibility

· 13 checks — Landmarks, headings, alt text, forms, and link quality rolled into one auditable list.
SCORE
71
GRADE
C
FIX
3
REVIEW
3
PASS
7
INFO
0
Checks
13
7 PASS 3 REVIEW 3 FIX
D
Web Manifest
Action
Not found
FIX
Not found
Info::
No web manifest found
No manifest at standard paths (/manifest.json, /site.webmanifest). A manifest is optional but enables PWA features like home screen installation and standalone display.

No web manifest found.

D
Dark Mode Support
Action
No dark mode signals
FIX
No dark mode signals
Info::
No dark mode signals detected
Consider adding CSS with @media (prefers-color-scheme: dark) and <meta name='color-scheme' content='light dark'>.
Info::
Detection limited to meta tags and inline styles
External CSS files may contain prefers-color-scheme rules not visible to this scan.
Dark ModeNo Dark Mode Detected
color-scheme meta Not set ✗Dark theme-color Not set ✗CSS indicators Not detected ✗

Detection limited to meta tags and inline styles.

F
Navigation UX
Action
1 navigation pattern(s)
FIX
1 navigation pattern(s)
Info::
Skip navigation link detected
Info::
3 navigation landmark(s) detected
Breadcrumbs
Search
Skip Link Skip link detected
Labeled Navigation 3 <nav> element(s)
Back to Top
Hamburger Menu
Sticky Navigation Cannot reliably detect (CSS-based)
2 of 6 testable patterns navigation patterns detected. Limited navigation support. Consider adding breadcrumbs, search, and skip link.
B
Form Accessibility
2 of 4 controls have issues
REVIEW
2 of 4 controls have issues
Critical::
2 control(s) without accessible label
Form controls need a <label>, aria-label, or aria-labelledby for screen readers.
Got: <input type="search" name="s">; <textarea name="g-recaptcha-response" id="g-recaptcha-response-100000">
Info::
2 control(s) properly labeled
4 controls
2 labeled
0 placeholder only
2 unlabeled
ControlTypeLabelMethod
#searchsubmitSearchfor/id
inputcheckboxnone
ssearch(none)none
#g-recaptcha-response-100000textarea(none)none

Form controls need a <label>, aria-label, or aria-labelledby for screen readers.

<input type="search" name="s">; <textarea name="g-recaptcha-response" id="g-recaptcha-response-100000">

Why this matters

Form controls without labels — assistive tech announces 'edit text' with no context; users can't complete forms.

Source: WCAG 2.1 SC 3.3.2

B
404 Error Page
HTTP 404, custom page
REVIEW
HTTP 404, custom page
Info::
Correct 404 status code returned
Got: HTTP 404
Info::
Custom styled 404 page
Info::
Navigation links present on 404 page
Info::
Search form present on 404 page
404 Page Quality ✓ Custom 404 Page
Status Code HTTP 404 ✓Page Title NHS England » Page not found ✓Custom Styling ✓Navigation ✓Homepage Link ✗Search Form ✓
C
Favicon & Branding
Action
6 icon(s) detected
REVIEW
6 icon(s) detected
Warning::
No favicon.ico at site root
Some older browsers, bookmark tools, and RSS readers look for /favicon.ico. Add one as a fallback.
Info::
HTML icon links detected
Info::
Apple touch icon present
Info::
Multiple icon sizes detected
✗ favicon.ico Missing
✓ PNG Icons Present
✓ Apple Touch Present
✗ SVG Favicon Missing
✗ Manifest Icons Missing
✓ Multiple Sizes Present
A
Landmark Structure
11 landmarks
PASS
11 landmarks
Info::
<main> landmark present
Info::
3 <nav> landmark(s) found
Warning::
3 of 3 <nav> elements are unlabeled
Multiple navigations need aria-label to distinguish them for screen readers.
Info::
Skip navigation link present
Page Structure — as a screen reader sees it
BANNER header NAV MAIN CONTENTINFO footer

Multiple navigations need aria-label to distinguish them for screen readers.

Why this matters

Some <nav> elements lack aria-label — screen-reader users hear 'navigation' multiple times with no way to distinguish them.

Learn more ▾

When a page has multiple <nav> regions (primary, footer, breadcrumb), each needs aria-label or aria-labelledby. AT users navigate by landmark; identical 'navigation' announcements force them to enter each one to discover purpose.

Source: WAI-ARIA Authoring Practices

A+
Heading Hierarchy
24 headings
PASS
24 headings
Info::
Single H1 present
  • H1 Cookies on the NHS England website
  • H2 We lead the NHS in England to deliver high quality services for all
  • H2 NHS league tables
  • H2 National Cancer Plan
  • H2 Fit for the Future: 10 Year Health Plan for England
  • H2 Medium Term Planning Framework - delivering change together 2026/27 to 2028/29
  • H3 Digital transformation
  • H3 Elective care
  • H3 Workforce
  • H3 Mental health
  • H3 Integrated care
  • H3 Cancer
  • H3 Urgent and emergency care
  • H3 Primary care
  • H3 Health inequalities improvement
  • H3 NHS IMPACT
  • H3 NHS @home
  • H2 News and blogs
  • H3 NHS detects tens of thousands of bowel cancers thanks to screening programme
  • H4 Lifesaving spring COVID-19 jab offers protection to millions of vulnerable people
  • H4 March was busiest month ever for A&Es amid meningitis outbreak
  • H2 This site uses cookies to store information on your computer.
  • H3 Necessary Cookies
  • H3 Analytics
A+
Alt Text Quality
All 5 images OK
PASS
All 5 images OK
Info::
1 image(s) with alt text over 125 characters
Info::
4 image(s) with good alt text
5 images 4 good alt text
IssueCount
too long1 image(s)
A+
Print Stylesheet
Print styles detected
PASS
Print styles detected
Info::
External print stylesheet detected
Got: https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/themes/nhsengland/static/print-fe4e4682bcb96cc3674bd9e62072e3d81c0553ab.min.css?ver=6.9.4
Print Stylesheet ✓ Print Optimized
Print stylesheet https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/themes/nhsengland/static/print-fe4e4682bcb96cc3674bd9e62072e3d81c0553ab.min.css?ver=6.9.4 ✓Inline @media print Not detected ✗
A+
Color Contrast (Screenshot)
20 text elements analyzed, 0 fail WCAG AA
PASS

Analyzes text contrast against the actual rendered page, including background images, gradients, and overlays that CSS-based tools cannot detect.

20 pass
Show all checked elements (20)
ElementRatioRequiredFGBGResult
h1 Cookies on the NHS E…21.00:13.0:1
#000000
#FFFFFF
Pass
h2 We lead the NHS in E…18.93:13.0:1
#000000
#F3F3F3
Pass
h2 News and blogs21.00:13.0:1
#000000
#FFFFFF
Pass
h2 This site uses cooki…21.00:13.0:1
#000000
#FFFFFF
Pass
h3 Necessary Cookies21.00:13.0:1
#000000
#FFFFFF
Pass
h3 Analytics21.00:13.0:1
#000000
#FFFFFF
Pass
title NHS England21.00:14.5:1
#000000
#FFFFFF
Pass
a Skip to main content21.00:14.5:1
#000000
#FFFFFF
Pass
div We've put some small…21.00:14.5:1
#000000
#FFFFFF
Pass
a read more about our …21.00:14.5:1
#000000
#FFFFFF
Pass
div before you choose.21.00:14.5:1
#000000
#FFFFFF
Pass
button Change my preference…21.00:14.5:1
#000000
#FFFFFF
Pass
button I'm OK with analytic…21.00:14.5:1
#000000
#FFFFFF
Pass
label Search21.00:14.5:1
#000000
#FFFFFF
Pass
label Search21.00:14.5:1
#000000
#FFFFFF
Pass
span Menu21.00:14.5:1
#000000
#FFFFFF
Pass
a Home21.00:14.5:1
#000000
#FFFFFF
Pass
a News21.00:14.5:1
#000000
#FFFFFF
Pass
a Publications21.00:14.5:1
#000000
#FFFFFF
Pass
a Statistics21.00:14.5:1
#000000
#FFFFFF
Pass

Methodology: The top 20 text elements by font size were checked. Background color was sampled from the desktop screenshot using a 5-point pattern. WCAG 2.1 AA requires 4.5:1 for normal text and 3:1 for large text.

A
Lighthouse Accessibility Audits
Score 91/100 — 3 failing, 28 passed
PASS
91

Accessibility

These checks highlight opportunities to improve the accessibility of your web app. Automatic detection can only detect a subset of issues and does not guarantee the accessibility of your web app, so manual testing is also encouraged.

Contrast

Low-contrast text is difficult or impossible for many users to read. Link text that is discernible improves the experience for users with low vision. Learn how to make links distinguishable.

Why this matters

Performance issues directly impact user engagement and conversion rates.

Failing Elements
read more about our cookies div.cookie-banner-container > div.cookie-banner > div.rich-text > a#nhsuk-cookie-banner__link

These are opportunities to improve the legibility of your content.

Navigation

A value greater than 0 implies an explicit navigation ordering. Although technically valid, this often creates frustrating experiences for users who rely on assistive technologies. Learn more about the `tabindex` attribute.

Why this matters

Performance issues directly impact user engagement and conversion rates.

Failing Elements
Skip to main content body.home > div.skip-link > a
read more about our cookies div.cookie-banner-container > div.cookie-banner > div.rich-text > a#nhsuk-cookie-banner__link

These are opportunities to improve keyboard navigation in your application.

Best practices

Touch targets with sufficient size and spacing help users who may have difficulty targeting small controls to activate the targets. Learn more about touch targets.

Why this matters

Performance issues directly impact user engagement and conversion rates.

Failing Elements
Terms and conditions nav.footer-navigation > ul#menu-footer > li#menu-item-29149 > a
Privacy and cookies nav.footer-navigation > ul#menu-footer > li#menu-item-29151 > a

These items highlight common accessibility best practices.

○Interactive controls are keyboard focusable
○Interactive elements indicate their purpose and state
○The page has a logical tab order
○Visual order on the page follows DOM order
○User focus is not accidentally trapped in a region
○The user's focus is directed to new content added to the page
○HTML5 landmark elements are used to improve navigation
○Offscreen content is hidden from assistive technology
○Custom controls have associated labels
○Custom controls have ARIA roles
●`[aria-*]` attributes match their roles
●`[aria-hidden="true"]` is not present on the document `<body>`
●`[role]`s have all required `[aria-*]` attributes
●`[role]` values are valid
●`[aria-*]` attributes have valid values
●`[aria-*]` attributes are valid and not misspelled
●Buttons have an accessible name
●Image elements have `[alt]` attributes
●Input buttons have discernible text.
●Form elements have associated labels
●`[user-scalable="no"]` is not used in the `<meta name="viewport">` element and the `[maximum-scale]` attribute is not less than 5.
●`[accesskey]` values are unique
●ARIA attributes are used as specified for the element's role
●`[aria-hidden="true"]` elements do not contain focusable descendents
●Elements use only permitted ARIA attributes
●Background and foreground colors have a sufficient contrast ratio
●Document has a `<title>` element
●`<frame>` or `<iframe>` elements have a title
●`<html>` element has a `[lang]` attribute
●`<html>` element has a valid value for its `[lang]` attribute
●Links have a discernible name
●Lists contain only `<li>` elements and script supporting elements (`<script>` and `<template>`).
●List items (`<li>`) are contained within `<ul>`, `<ol>` or `<menu>` parent elements
●Heading elements appear in a sequentially-descending order
●Skip links are focusable.
●Document has a main landmark.
●Deprecated ARIA roles were not used
●Identical links have the same purpose.
○`button`, `link`, and `menuitem` elements have accessible names
○Elements with `role="dialog"` or `role="alertdialog"` have accessible names.
○ARIA input fields have accessible names
○ARIA `meter` elements have accessible names
○ARIA `progressbar` elements have accessible names
○Elements with an ARIA `[role]` that require children to contain a specific `[role]` have all required children.
○`[role]`s are contained by their required parent element
○Elements with the `role=text` attribute do not have focusable descendents.
○ARIA toggle fields have accessible names
○ARIA `tooltip` elements have accessible names
○ARIA `treeitem` elements have accessible names
○The page contains a heading, skip link, or landmark region
○`<dl>`'s contain only properly-ordered `<dt>` and `<dd>` groups, `<script>`, `<template>` or `<div>` elements.
○Definition list items are wrapped in `<dl>` elements
○ARIA IDs are unique
○No form fields have multiple labels
○`<html>` element has an `[xml:lang]` attribute with the same base language as the `[lang]` attribute.
○`<input type="image">` elements have `[alt]` text
○The document does not use `<meta http-equiv="refresh">`
○`<object>` elements have alternate text
○Select elements have associated label elements.
○Cells in a `<table>` element that use the `[headers]` attribute refer to table cells within the same table.
○`<th>` elements and elements with `[role="columnheader"/"rowheader"]` have data cells they describe.
○`[lang]` attributes have a valid value
○`<video>` elements contain a `<track>` element with `[kind="captions"]`
○Tables have different content in the summary attribute and `<caption>`.
○All heading elements contain content.
○Uses ARIA roles only on compatible elements
○Image elements do not have `[alt]` attributes that are redundant text.
○Elements with visible text labels have matching accessible names.
○Tables use `<caption>` instead of cells with the `[colspan]` attribute to indicate a caption.
○`<td>` elements in a large `<table>` have one or more table headers.
All checks on this page are automated. Results are estimates - run targeted manual reviews when the score affects a release decision.

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