Accessibility statement for shop.kew.org

Accessibility statement for shop.kew.org.

This website is run by Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. We want as many people as possible to be able to use this website. For example, that means you should be able to:

• change colours, contrast levels and fonts
• zoom in up to 200% without the text spilling off the screen
• navigate most of the website using just a keyboard
• navigate most of the website using speech recognition software
• listen to most of the website using a screen reader (including the most recent versions of JAWS, NVDA and VoiceOver)

We’ve also tried to make the text on our websites as simple as possible to understand. Sometimes we use scientific language to explain our work. When we do this, we try to offer an explanation in plain English, or link to content elsewhere on our websites that will provide more information.

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

How accessible this website is

We know some parts of this website are not fully accessible:

Keyboard / Voice input

The following aspects of the site are not operable with a keyboard:

• The price filter on listing pages
• The star ratings on product pages
• The navigation the mobile (or high-zoom) view
• The progress bar in the checkout
• The main navigation drop-down menus (although the vast majority of links are available in the page content)

Other keyboard related issues include:

• Tabbing through the search and header area can be unpredictable, trapping the focus for mobile (or high-zoom) users
• The keyboard focus does not always go back to the top when navigating from one page to the next
• Some in-page links and controls but do not move the keyboard focus
• Some non-interactive elements can be focused, which might be confusing
• Some drop-downs can cause an unexpected page reload
• The focus indicator is missing on a few links and controls

Some form fields cannot be navigated to or activated by speaking the visible label of the control.

Zoom/low-vision

• The navigation is very difficult to use at high levels of zoom, cutting off the text
• The product gallery may have overlapping buttons at high levels of browser zoom
• A few areas of text and form controls lack contrast
• The main navigation drop-down menus cannot be dismissed without mousing-away from them

Screenreaders

As well as the keyboard issues above, screenreader users may notice that:

• Some images are missing, or have inappropriate, alternative text
• Some links are missing appropriate link text
• Some controls are missing appropriate labels
• Some form fields do not automatically announce labels, instructions and error messages
• Some forms are not properly structured to convey the meaning properly
• Some headings don’t convey the correct page structure
• The table structure in the checkout may be confusing as the links for updating / cancelling are separated from the item.
• Some controls are difficult to use as they do not provide all the information that is available visually such as their role and state. This includes some buttons, sliders, the address lookup, expandable controls, the checkout progress bar and search dropdown.
• Status updates are not automatically announced

Cognitive

• Some form fields are missing labels
• Some invalid form fields did not proved an error message
• Some form fields are missing information to allow customisation and auto-filling of those fields
• You can get timed-out of the website causing items in your basket to disappear

Feedback and contact information

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

• email info@kew.org
• call 020 8332 5655

We’ll consider your request and get back to you in 3-5 working days.

What to do if you can't book tickets or purchase something on one of our websites

We are working to improve our ticketing websites as part of a large programme of work to improve visitor experience at Kew. In the meantime:

• if you wish to make a group booking please email groups@kew.org
• if you wish to book tickets for a member event ticketed through tickets.kew.org or purchase a membership please email membership@kew.org
• if you wish to book tickets for anything else via tickets.kew.org or See Tickets please email info@kew.org
• if you wish to purchase anything from our online shop please email onlineshop@kew.org

Reporting accessibility problems with this website

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: info@kew.org.

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

Technical information about this website’s accessibility

Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew is committed to making its website accessible, in accordance with the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018.

Preparation of this accessibility statement 

This statement was prepared on 5th July 2022. This page was last reviewed on 8th July 2022.

This websites covered in this statement were tested between October 2021 and June 2022. The tests were carried out by Nomensa.

We took a sample of pages that represented the templates and types of content available on the website and tested the donation and membership journeys. We also ran an automated scan of the website to find areas that might have different issues.

What we’re doing to improve accessibility

Following audits across all Kew sites between October 2021 and July 2022, we have identified a number of areas where their accessibility can be improved. Some of these fixes have been made and we expect a significant number more to be made during the remainder over the next 6-12 months. We will regular review and update this statement as these changes are made.

Where else to find information about the accessibility of our sites:

• Our main kew.org accessibility statement (which covers our public facing websites)