Accessibility Statement for the North Sea Transition Authority 

The North Sea Transition Authority is committed to making its website 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 www.nstauthority.co.uk  website. It does not cover other nstauthority.co.uk subdomains such as the NDR (https://ndr.nstauthority.co.uk/) or the Energy Portal (https://itportal.nstauthority.co.uk), which have their own accessibility statements.

How you should be able to use this website

We want as many people as possible to be able to use this website. 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 also make 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

Parts of this website are not fully accessible. For example:

  • some pages and document attachments are not written in plain English
  • some documents have poor colour contrast
  • some heading elements are not consistent
  • some images used to convey information have poor colour contrast 
  • some information in tables cannot be reached with a keyboard
  • Some PDF Documents published before 23 September 2018 are not accessible
     

NSTA services

Each service has its own accessibility page, with details of how accessible the service is, how to report problems and how to request information in an alternative format. You can access these pages from the footer inside the service.

Feedback and contact information

If you find any problems not listed on this page or think we’re not meeting accessibility requirements, contact:

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

We’ll consider your request and get back to you in 10 days.

If you cannot view the map on our ‘contact us’ page, call or email us for directions.


Enforcement procedure

The Equality and Human Rights Commission ('EHRC') is responsible for enforcing the requirements set out in The Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018 ('the Accessibility Regulations'). If you are not happy with how we respond to your complaint, then you should contact the Equality Advisory and Support Service ('EASS'). 

Technical information about this website’s accessibility 

The North Sea Transition 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 and mobile applications are partially compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines version 2.2 AA standard, due to the non-compliances and the exemptions listed below.

Non-accessible content

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

Non-compliance with the accessibility regulations

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

  1. Images on some pages do not always have suitable image descriptions. Users of assistive technologies may not have access to information conveyed in images. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 1.1.1 (Non-text Content). We have manually checked that images have an alt tag. We will be adding a code fix so content editors can't add an image with alt text and to check the tag is appropriate. We plan to fix this issue in December 2024
  2. Some images use colour as the only way to convey meaning. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 1.4.1 (Use of Color). We plan to fix the issue in December 2024.
  3. Some images include text with poor colour contrast to its background. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 1.4.3 (Contrast (Minimum)). We plan to fix the issue in December 2024.
  4. Some pages use images of text instead of text. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 1.4.5 (Images of Text). We plan to fix the issue in December 2024.
  5. Some images include elements with poor colour contrast to the background. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 1.4.11 (Non-text Contrast). We plan to fix the issue in December 2024.
  6. Some pages have duplicate titles. This may make it difficult for users to orient themselves and find the right content. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 2.4.2 (Page Titled). We plan to fix the issue in February 2025.
  7. Some headings don’t accurately describe the content underneath. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 2.4.6 (Headings and Labels). We plan to fix the issue in December 2024.
  8. The text on some buttons doesn’t accurately describe what the button does. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 2.4.6 (Headings and Labels). We plan to fix the issue in December 2024.
  9. Some images of text that are used as links have image descriptions that don’t include all of the text. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 2.5.3 (Label in Name). We plan to fix the issue in December 2024.
  10. Some links that reveal more content can cause some screen reader users to lose their position on the page. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 4.1.2 (Name, Role, Value). We plan to fix the issue in January 2025.
  11. Some pdf's include text with poor colour contrast to its background. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 1.4.3 (Contrast (Minimum)). We plan to fix the issue in January 2025.
  12. The homepage has video content in an iFrame which has a tabindex =-1 value. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 2.1.1: Keyboard. We plan to fix the issue in November 2024.


Microsoft PowerBI Applications

Our Microsoft PowerBI Applications fail to meet WCAG 2.2 guidlines. We plan to have the applications converted by October 2025. When we publish new content, we’ll make sure our use of documents applications meets accessibility standards. 

Below are the accessibility issues for PowerBi:

  1. Images on some pages do not always have suitable image descriptions. Users of assistive technologies may not have access to information conveyed in images. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 1.1.1 (Non-text Content).
  2. The tab order does not follow logical relationships and sequences in the content. This fails success Criterion 2.4.3 (Focus Order)
  3. Some ARIA input fields don't have an accessible name. This fails WCAG success criterion 1.3.1: Info and Relationships.
  4. Some text doesn’t have sufficient color contrast. This fails WCAG success criterion 1.4.3 Contrast (minimum)
  5. Some clickable content doesn’t have sufficient Target Size. This fails WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion (SC) 2.5.8 Target Size
  6. Some application include embed ArcGIS maps which are exempt from the accessability guidelines. The maps cause the following errors WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 3.3.2: Labels or Instructions and WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 2.4.4 "Link Purpose errors".


Disproportionate burden

We do not deem any content under this statements scope a disproportionate burden.


Content that’s not within the scope of the Accessibility Regulations 

Maps

Our ArcGIS Applications fail to meet WCAG 2.2 success criterion 1.1.1 (non-text content) but are exempt as they are Maps. The data can be accessed via an accessabile csv file.


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. We will assess individual documents published prior to that date to determine whether or not they are essential and react accordingly. 

Any new PDFs or Word documents we publish will meet accessibility standards. 

 

What we're doing to improve accessibility 

In addition to the NSTA’s internal review we are working with our website provider to make sure the content, components and code meet Web Content Accessibility Guidelines version 2.2 AA standards.

The graphics team are reviewing and replacing images and pdf's on the site that might have poor colour contrast or too much text and look at alternatives this will be done by Febuary 2025.

Our PowerBI team are going to fix any outstanding issues with the PowerBI applications by October 2025.

Although maps are exempt from the regulations our digital team are going to investigate our ArcGIS maps to see if any improvements in accessibility can be made.

We plan to add checks so content editors can’t add images without appropriate alt text and to ensure CMS editors know how to add accessabile content.

We plan to fix interactive elements that cause screen reader users to lose their position on the page. 

We plan to review the site structure to remove page name duplication and improve page content with appropriate headings and labels.

We will regulary review pages to identify any non-accessabile content.

Preparation of this accessibility statement

This statement was prepared on 27th September 2023. It was last reviewed on 1st November 2024.

This website was last tested on 30th September 2024 against the WCAG 2.2 AA standard.

The test was carried out by the NSTA. The most viewed pages were tested using automated testing tools by our website team. A further audit of the website was carried out to the WCAG 2.2 AA standard.

We used this approach to deciding on a sample of pages to test: 

  • We used a mixture of simple manual checks and automated tests to find only the most common barriers to users with accessibility needs.  
  • Manual checks included using each page without a mouse, viewing the page at different zoom settings, and simulating viewing the page on a small screen. 
  • The automated tests were completed using the latest version of axeTM: https://www.deque.com/axe/ and WAVE
  • Tests were completed using different settings in the Google Chrome browser on a window operating system with a 28.9 inch screen. 
     

Pages we checked 

Page Name  URL 
Home  / 
Contact  /about-us/contact-us 
PDF /media/qa1kykrt/a5overview2024.pdf
Form  /about-us/sign-up-for-updates 
Accessibility   /footer/accessibility 
The move to net zero  /the-move-to-net-zero 
Exploration- production   /regulatory-information/exploration-and-production 
Supply chain   /regulatory-information/supporting-the-supply-chain 
Privacy Statement   /footer/privacy-statement