Accessibility Statement

1. Our Commitment

Ubuntu Education English Academy ("the Academy") is committed to ensuring that our website, student portal, lecturer portal, and all digital learning materials are accessible to people with a wide range of disabilities and impairments, including but not limited to:

• Visual impairments (blindness, low vision, colour blindness)
• Hearing impairments (deafness, hard of hearing)
• Motor or physical disabilities affecting keyboard and mouse use
• Cognitive and learning disabilities (dyslexia, ADHD)
• Speech and communication impairments
• Older users experiencing age-related accessibility needs

We view accessibility not as a compliance obligation but as a fundamental expression of our Ubuntu values — that inclusive education means everyone can participate equally.

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2. Standards We Follow

We aim to conform to the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 at Level AA, as published by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C). These guidelines are organised around four principles — content must be:

• Perceivable — Information must be presented in ways all users can perceive
• Operable — Interface components must be navigable and usable by all
• Understandable — Content and operation must be understandable
• Robust — Content must be interpreted reliably by assistive technologies

We also follow guidance from the Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) and apply best practices from the ARIA (Accessible Rich Internet Applications) specification where applicable.

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3. Accessibility Features Implemented

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4. Conformance Status

The table below summarises our current WCAG 2.1 conformance status across the main sections of our digital presence:

Website Section	WCAG Level AA	Notes
Public homepage & navigation	Conformant	Fully keyboard navigable, ARIA landmarks in place
Programmes & About pages	Conformant	Semantic headings, sufficient contrast, responsive
Admissions registration form	Conformant	Labels, error messages, and validation implemented
Contact form	Conformant	All fields labelled, submit confirmation provided
Resources page	Conformant	Descriptive link text, proper heading structure
Student portal — dashboard	Partial	Charts lack text alternatives (planned fix Q3 2025)
Student portal — materials	Conformant	File type and size information provided
Lecturer portal	Partial	File upload zone needs improved keyboard support
Admin portal	Partial	Data tables need scope attributes (planned fix Q3 2025)
News & Events page	Conformant	Category filter announces state changes to screen readers
Legal pages (Privacy, Terms)	Conformant	Logical heading hierarchy, table of contents navigation

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5. Known Limitations

We are transparent about areas where we have not yet achieved full accessibility. The following known issues are being actively addressed:

• Dashboard analytics charts (portals): Bar and progress charts do not currently have text-based alternatives. A table view of chart data is planned for Q3 2025.
• File upload zone (Lecturer portal): The drag-and-drop upload area has limited keyboard support. A standard file input button alternative is always available.
• Admin data tables: Some complex tables in the admin panel lack full scope and headers attributes. This is on our accessibility roadmap.
• Video materials: Video content uploaded by lecturers may not include captions. We are developing a policy requiring captioned video uploads.
• PDF materials: Some PDF resources may not be fully tagged for screen reader compatibility. We are reviewing our document production process.

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6. Assistive Technology Compatibility

Our website and portals have been tested with and are designed to work with the following assistive technologies:

• Screen readers: NVDA with Firefox, JAWS with Chrome, VoiceOver with Safari (macOS and iOS)
• Keyboard-only navigation: All interactive elements reachable via Tab/Shift+Tab, activated with Enter/Space
• Voice control: Compatible with Dragon NaturallySpeaking and iOS/macOS Voice Control
• High contrast mode: Windows High Contrast and browser-based high contrast extensions supported
• Zoom tools: Pages reflow correctly when zoomed to 200% and 400% in all major browsers

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7. Text and Display Adjustments

You can adjust the display of our website using your browser or operating system settings without loss of functionality:

• Increase text size: Use Ctrl + (Windows/Linux) or Cmd + (Mac) to zoom in. Our layouts reflow at up to 400% zoom.
• Change fonts: You can override our fonts in browser settings or with a browser extension (e.g. for dyslexia-friendly fonts like OpenDyslexic).
• Reduce motion: We respect the prefers-reduced-motion CSS media query. Animations are minimised for users who have enabled "Reduce motion" in their OS settings.
• Dark/light mode: Our portals are compatible with system-level dark mode preferences.
• Colour adjustments: Our interface does not rely on colour alone to convey information.

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8. Learning Accessibility

Beyond technical standards, we are committed to making learning itself accessible. This includes:

• Clear, plain-language course materials written at an appropriate reading level
• Multiple formats for content delivery where possible (text, audio, visual)
• Flexible assessment options for students with documented learning disabilities
• Extended deadlines available upon request for students with relevant needs
• One-to-one support sessions with lecturers for students requiring additional assistance
• Physical accessibility at our Saturday Hub venue (ground-floor access, wide doorways)

Students with accessibility needs or disabilities are encouraged to disclose this to our admissions team so we can make appropriate arrangements from day one.

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9. Feedback and Complaints

We welcome feedback about the accessibility of our website and services. If you encounter any barriers or difficulties, please tell us — your input directly shapes our improvement plans.

You can report an accessibility issue by:

• Emailing us at info@ubuntueducation.academy with subject line "Accessibility Issue"
• Calling us on +224 624 977 027 during office hours
• Using the contact form at our Contact page

We aim to acknowledge all accessibility reports within 5 working days and provide a substantive response or resolution within 30 days.

If you are not satisfied with our response to an accessibility complaint, you may escalate to the relevant national digital accessibility enforcement authority in your country.

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10. Our Ongoing Improvement Plan

Accessibility is not a one-time project but a continuous commitment. Our planned improvements include:

• Q3 2025: Add data table alternatives to all portal analytics charts
• Q3 2025: Full keyboard support for the lecturer file upload zone
• Q3 2025: Complete scope/headers audit of all admin data tables
• Q4 2025: Implement automatic captions for academy-produced video content
• Q4 2025: Full audit of all PDF materials and remediation of untagged documents
• 2026: Commission an independent third-party WCAG 2.1 Level AA audit
• Ongoing: Staff accessibility awareness training for all content creators

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11. Contact Us About Accessibility

If you need information in an alternative format, require a reasonable adjustment, or want to report an accessibility barrier, please get in touch: