Accessibility for MK:Smart

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 MK:Smart website (https://www.mksmart.org/)

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 and listed below.

Non-accessible content

Write lists or groups of links semantically:

Lists of related items should be written semantically as a list. This fails WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 1.3.1 Info and Relationships (Level A) and will be resolved by the end of February 2027.

Fix duplicate IDs:

Lists (e.g., <ul> or <ol>) should only contain list items (<li>) as a direct descendant to ensure that screen readers can accurately report the amount of items contained in the list. This fails WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 4.1.1 Parsing (Obsolete and removed) (Level A) and will be resolved by the end of February 2027.

Ensure lists are marked up correctly:

All controls on the page – including links, buttons, and fields – should clearly indicate when they have been selected by the keyboard. This fails WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 4.1.1 Parsing (Obsolete and removed) (Level A) and will be resolved by the end of February 2027.

Ensure every page contains a top-level heading:

 Every page should have a clearly defined heading, known as a “H1” (Heading 1). This fails WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 1.3.1 Info and Relationships (Level A) and will be resolved by the end of February 2027.

Add headers to tables:

Tables which contain information should have clear headers defined. This fails WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 1.3.1 Info and Relationships (Level A) and will be resolved by the end of February 2027.

Combine adjacent links with the same destination:

Two adjacent links should not point to the same destination. You almost always want to combine the two links. This fails WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 1.1.1 Non-text Content ) (Level A) and will be resolved by the end of February 2027.

Add a scope to table headings:

All table headers should define a valid scope attribute, which tells assistive technologies what the header refers to. This fails WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 1.3.1 Info and Relationships (Level A) and will be resolved by the end of February 2027.

Avoid using the same link text for different destinations:

Screen reader users will see links on a page listed without context, so you should ensure the same link text is not used to point to different web addresses. This fails WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 2.4.4 Link Purpose (In Context) (Level A) and will be resolved by the end of February 2027.

Specify a title for all frames:

 All frames must define a readable title, which briefly described the contents of that frame. This fails WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 2.4.1 Bypass Blocks (Level A) and will be resolved by the end of February 2027.

Images with empty alternative text must not specify titles:

An image with empty alternative text (e.g. <img alt="">) should not specify a title attribute, or if specified, the title should be empty. This fails WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 1.1.1 Non-text Content (Level A) and will be resolved by the end of February 2027.

Wrap items with the same name inside a fieldset:

Radio buttons or check boxes with the same name attribute must be contained within a fieldset element. This fails WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 1.3.1 Info and Relationships (Level A) and will be resolved by the end of February 2027.

Ensure controls change appearance when they are selected:

All controls on the page – including links, buttons, and fields – should show when they have been selected by the keyboard. This fails WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 2.4.7 Focus Visible (Level AA) and will be resolved by the end of February 2027.

Ensure focus is not fully obscured:

When selecting a user interface component with the keyboard, the focus indicator must not be completely obscured by anything in front of it. This fails WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 2.4.11 Focus Not Obscured (Minimum) (Level AA) and will be resolved by the end of February 2027.

Ensure text has sufficient contrast (AA):

To comply with WCAG AA, the colour of text must sufficiently contrast with its background colour, so that people with moderate visual impairments can read it. This fails WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 1.4.3 Contrast (Minimum) (Level AA) and will be resolved by the end of February 2027.

Ensure form controls contrast sufficiently with their surroundings:

 Form controls must appear sufficiently distinct from their surroundings, so that people with visual impairments are still able to clearly see them. This fails WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 1.4.11 Non-text Contrast (Level AA) and will be resolved by the end of February 2027.

Identify the purpose of fields programmatically:

To comply with WCAG 2.1, fields must identify what their purpose is programmatically. If done correctly, this allows browsers to help users fill in forms with known information, such as their name and email address. This fails WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 1.3.5 Identify Input Purpose (Level AA) and will be resolved by the end of February 2027.

Preparation of this accessibility statement

This statement was prepared on 10 February 2026

This statement was last reviewed on 10 February 2026

This website was last tested on 10 February 2026

The testing approach taken involved:

  • W3C (World Wide Web Consortium) checks (alternative text, content structure, language of page, keyboard navigation, skip links)
  • Silktide (a continuous site-wide monitoring tool that regularly scans/crawls pages to surface accessibility and quality issues e.g., broken links, readability/content checks, usability and compliance risks, so they can be tracked and remediated over time).
  • Manual checks (content resizing, captions)

This included the following test methods:

  • WAVE, Web Accessibility Evaluation Tool
  • Keyboard-only testing
  • Zoom testing.

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 Open University Accessibility Feedback Form 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)