Accessibility statement for the Walter Scott Digital Archive

Website accessibility statement in line with the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018.

This accessibility statement applies to:

http://www.walterscott.lib.ed.ac.uk

This website is run by the Library and University Collections Directorate, Information Services Group at the University of Edinburgh. We want as many people as possible to be able to use this application. For example, that means you should be able to:

We’ve also made the website text as simple as possible to understand. However, some of our content is technical, and we use technical terms where there is no easier wording we could use without changing what the text means.

Customising the website

AbilityNet has advice on making your device easier to use if you have a disability. This is an external site with suggestions to make your computer more accessible:

AbilityNet – My Computer My Way

With a few simple steps you can customise the appearance of our website using your browser settings to make it easier to read and navigate:

Additional information on how to customise our website appearance

If you are a member of University staff or a student, you can use the free SensusAccess accessible document conversion service:

Information on SensusAccess

How accessible this website is

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

Feedback and contact information

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

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

Reporting accessibility problems with this website

We are 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, please contact:

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

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, please contact the Equality Advisory and Support Service (EASS) directly:

Contact details for the Equality Advisory and Support Service (EASS)

The government has produced information on how to report accessibility issues:

Reporting an accessibility problem on a public sector website

Contacting us by phone using British Sign Language

British Sign Language service

Contact Scotland BSL runs a service for British Sign Language users and all of Scotland’s public bodies using video relay. This enables sign language users to contact public bodies and vice versa. The service operates from 8.00am to 12.00am, 7 days a week.

Contact Scotland BSL service details.

Technical information about this website’s accessibility

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

Compliance status

This website is partially compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 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

The following items do not comply with the WCAG 2.2 AA success criteria:

We aim to improve our website’s accessibility on a regular and continuous basis. See “What we’re doing to improve accessibility” for information on how we are improving the site.

We are working towards solving these problems and expect significant improvements by May 2027. The site is fully within our control.

Disproportionate burden

We are not currently claiming that any accessibility problems would be a disproportionate burden to fix.

Content that’s not within the scope of the accessibility regulations

At this time, we believe no content is outside the scope of the accessibility regulations.

What we’re doing to improve accessibility

We will continue to address and make significant improvements to the accessibility issues highlighted. Unless specified otherwise, a complete solution or significant improvement will be in place by May 2027. At this time, we believe the site to be fully under our control.

While we are in the process of resolving these accessibility issues, we will ensure reasonable adjustments are in place to make sure no user is disadvantaged. As changes are made, we will continue to review and retest the accessibility of this website.

Preparation of this accessibility statement

This statement was prepared on 16 August 2024. It was last reviewed on 23 April 2026.

The website was last tested in April 2026. The testing was carried out by Library and University Collections, Information Services Group at the University of Edinburgh using both automated and manual methods. The site was tested on a PC, primarily using Microsoft Edge alongside Mozilla Firefox and Google Chrome.

A recent worldwide survey of screen-reader and browser usage shows that Chrome, Mozilla Firefox and Microsoft Edge are increasing in popularity, and Google Chrome is now the favoured browser for screen readers:

WebAIM: Screen Reader User Survey

The three browsers mentioned above were used in certain tests for breadth and variety.

We ran automated testing using axe DevTools and then manual testing that included:

Change Log

Since our initial report, we have undertaken more extensive manual testing with assistive software to get a better understanding of the accessibility issues on this website. This section will receive updates as and when accessibility improvements are made to the website.

September 2025