Accessibility Statement For Library Search

The Open University is committed to making its websites and mobile applications accessible, in accordance with the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018.

This accessibility statement applies to the Library Search (NDE) website https://library-search.open.ac.uk

We want as many people as possible to be able to use our websites and mobile apps, and accessibility is an essential part of our mission. On our Accessibility hub, you'll find everything you need to answer any questions you have about accessibility, whether you're a student or a member of staff.

To adapt the content to your needs or preferences you should be able to:

Change colours, contrasts levels and fonts.
Resize text up to 200% without impact on the functionality of the website.
Zoom in up to 400% without loss of information or functionality.
Navigate the website using just a keyboard.
- tab to ‘Skip to content’ links at the top of the page to jump over repetitive information to the main content.
- tab through the content; the current location will be indicated by a clear visual change.
- control the embedded media player to play audio and video materials.
Use a screen reader (e.g. JAWs, NVDA) to:
- listen to the content of web pages and use any functionality on the page.
- list the headings and subheadings in the page and then jump to their location on the page.
- bring up a list of meaningful links on the page.
Use transcripts or closed captions with most audio and video materials.
Download learning materials in alternative formats (e.g. Word document, PDF, ePub).
If you have a print disability we provide SensusAccess to students, which is an automated service that converts files from one format to another, for example, PDF to text, audio, Word or Braille.

AbilityNet also provides advice on making your device easier to use if you have a disability.

Compliance status

This website is partially compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines version 2.2 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

Orientation:

On New Search, My Library Activity, and Saved results, when the page is in portrait orientation, some of the buttons are cut off and some of the functionality is inaccessible. This is in breach of WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 1.3.4 Orientation Level AA and will be resolved by the end of July 2027.

Reflow:

On all pages tested, when zoomed to 400%, certain features are cut off or blocked by the search bar. This includes ‘Help me build my search’ and ‘Advanced Search’ on New Search and Search Results pages. This is in breach of WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 1.4.10 Reflow (Level AA) and will be resolved by the end of July 2027.

Bypass block:

There are too many dynamic bypasses, which defeats the purpose of the bypass and the user gets stuck tabbing between them all. Also, bypasses to cookie information and ‘Manage your options’ do not work across the system. This is linked to WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 2.4.1 Bypass Blocks Level A and will be resolved by the end of July 2027.

Focus visible:

On all pages tested, the language button does not receive sufficient focus when navigating via keyboard. This is not the language menu when collapsed, but the button in the top menu. In addition, on all pages tested, ‘New Search’, ‘Ask Anything’ and ‘Advanced Search’ do not receive sufficient focus either. This is in breach of WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 2.4.7 Focus Visible Level AA and will be resolved by the end of July 2027.

Keyboard:

On all pages that our Inclusive Collections banner is visible, users cannot dismiss the banner when navigating via keyboard. This is in breach of WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 2.1.1 Keyboard Level A and will be resolved by the end of July 2027.

Focus order and Focus not obscured:

On Search Results and Item Record the sign-in dialog box should come before the results, so that users can choose to dismiss it. Otherwise, this box obscures the filter menu. This is in breach of WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 2.4.3 Focus Order (Level A) and Success Criterion 2.4.11 Focus Not Obscured (Minimum) Level AA and will be resolved by the end of July 2027.

Page titled:

On My Library Activity and Saved Results, the page title is very long, and the helpful part of the title is right at the end, so that it doesn't display in the tab. This is in breach of WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 2.4.2 Page Titled (Level A) and will be resolved by the end of July 2027.

Headings and Labels:

On all pages, when screen size is adjusted ‘Help me build my search’ label disappears. Our testing tool describes this as ‘Buttons must have discernible text’. This is in breach of WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 2.4.6 Headings and Labels (Level AA) and will be resolved by the end of July 2027.

Info and relationships:

On Search Results our testing tool flagged ‘Certain ARIA roles must only contain particular children’. This is in breach of WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 1.3.1 Info and Relationships (Level A) and will be resolved by the end of July 2027.

Preparation of this accessibility statement

This statement was prepared on 13 July 2026.

This statement was last reviewed on 13 July 2026.

This website was last tested on 13 July 2026. The website was last formally audited in May 2026 however regularly undergoes accessibility testing.

A full audit was undertaken by the Library’s Digital Services team, focusing on the following sample pages:

New search
Search results
Item Record
My Library Activity
Saved results

These pages were chosen based on their usage and their prominence from the Library Search homepage.

This website was tested using the Accessibility Compliance Toolkit (ACT) which is an internal toolkit used to identify and check web pages for accessibility by conducting basic accessibility testing. This basic testing covers essential aspects of accessibility, but it doesn’t include all the WCAG 2.2 Level AA Success Criteria. Using the ACT combines manual checks with automated tests across a sample of pages identified as being representative of most or all of the components used on the website. The accessibility testing conducted on this website includes evaluating alternative text, colour contrast, content resizing, content structure, form labels, language of page, link text, keyboard navigation, captions and skip links. The following methods and tools were used:

Web Accessibility Evaluation Tool (WAVE)
Colour contrast analyser
Non-Visual Desktop Access (NVDA)
axe DevTools automated checker (colour contrast, form labels, link text)
Manual zoom check
Manual keyboard navigation check

Feedback and contact information

If you find that a certain section of our website is not accessible and you can’t get access to the information that you need please use the form below to request support and we will ensure that you are provided with the information you require. You will need to provide your contact details and Personal Identifier if you are a student so we can get back to you. You should expect to hear back from us within 5 working days.

The OU is very experienced in meeting accessibility needs for our students. In many cases we are able to provide module and other study support materials in alternative formats for students who indicate a need for this when completing a Disability Support Form.

In addition, some module materials are available in different formats and can be downloaded from module websites. Students can contact their Student Support Team for advice.

If you are a student, or someone who has had contact with the University before, and have a complaint about the accessibility of our websites, you should raise a complaint via the complaints and appeals process.

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 are based in the UK, and you’re not happy with how we respond to your complaint, contact the Equality Advisory and Support Service (EASS).

Name

Email address

OUCU/OU Personal Identifier

Please give the webpage address (URL) (e.g. www.open.ac.uk/library/news/) of the page that you have accessibility problems with. (Note: by default this will be populated with the URL of the last page you were on).

Please describe what it is you’d like us to help with or the accessibility issue you wish to report.

We appreciate that you have provided us with personal information, we will never sell on your data to anyone else and data is for the use of The Open University only. If you would like to find out more, please visit our privacy policy using the following link : www.open.ac.uk/privacy.