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Accessibility Policy

How we try to make UPBSS usable for everyone, and what to do if we have missed something.

Draft template. This describes the site as currently built and is based on self-assessment only. No independent accessibility audit and no assistive-technology testing have been carried out. Do not strengthen the claims below without evidence — a statement claiming full compliance without testing is worse than one that is honest about its gaps.

The legal position

We are a private-sector business. The Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) Accessibility Regulations 2018 apply to public sector organisations and therefore do not apply to us.

The Equality Act 2010 does apply, and extends to Scotland. As a provider of services to the public we have a duty to make reasonable adjustments so that disabled people are not put at a substantial disadvantage. That duty is anticipatory: it exists in advance, and is not triggered by a complaint.

We therefore aim to meet WCAG 2.2 Level AA as the recognised benchmark, and treat any failure to do so as a defect to be fixed. Accessibility is treated as part of building a page, not as a later audit.

One Scotland-specific point worth knowing: the Home Report Single Survey includes an accessibility audit of the property itself. That is a statutory feature of selling here, separate from the accessibility of this website, but it means buyers in Scotland expect accessibility information as standard.

What is in place

The following are built in deliberately and confirmed by inspection of the code:

  • A skip link on every page, jumping straight to the main content
  • Every interactive control is reachable and operable with a keyboard, with a visible focus indicator
  • Form fields have permanently visible labels — not placeholder text used as a label — and errors appear next to the field they belong to, in text, with a recovery hint rather than just a red border
  • Native browser validation bubbles are suppressed so every error is reported the same way
  • Decorative icons and the generated property illustrations are hidden from assistive technology
  • Icon-only buttons carry an accessible name
  • Animation is reduced or removed when your system requests reduced motion, including the auto-advancing testimonial carousel, which stops entirely
  • The carousel also pauses on hover and on keyboard focus, and announces changes through a live region
  • Headings follow a logical order and pages use landmark elements
  • Colour is not used as the only means of conveying information
  • Both a light and a dark theme are provided, and your choice is remembered
  • Layouts reflow without horizontal scrolling down to a 375 pixel wide screen, verified by measurement across every main page

Known limitations

We would rather list these than pretend they do not exist:

  • No independent audit has been carried out. Everything above is self-assessed.
  • No testing with screen readers or other assistive technology has yet been done. Assessment so far has been code inspection and automated measurement only.
  • Colour contrast has not been formally measured against the WCAG AA thresholds in either theme. It was designed with contrast in mind, but designed-for is not measured.
  • Text resizing and 200% zoom have not been formally verified for every page.
  • Property images are generated illustrations rather than photography, and are marked decorative. The written description carries the same information, but a visitor relying on images will get less from a listing than a sighted visitor.
  • PDF documents we publish may not be fully tagged for screen readers. Ask us and we will provide the content in another format.
  • Third-party content such as portal feeds or embedded maps may not meet the same standard once added.

Alternative formats

If you need anything on this site — a listing, a document or a form — in large print, plain text, audio or any other accessible format, contact us and we will provide it. There is no charge. If completing a form online is difficult, telephone us and a consultant will complete it with you.

Telling us about a problem

Email customerservice@upbss.com with the page address and what went wrong. That report is the most useful thing we can receive. We aim to respond within five working days and to fix confirmed issues in the next release. Where a fix will take longer we will tell you, and offer another way to get what you need meanwhile.

If you are unhappy with our response, please use our complaints procedure. If you believe we have failed in our duty to make reasonable adjustments under the Equality Act 2010, you can contact the Equality Advisory and Support Service, which provides free advice to individuals in England, Scotland and Wales.

Our plan

  1. Measure colour contrast across both themes and correct any pair below the AA threshold.
  2. Test the main journeys — search, listing, enquiry, appraisal — with at least one screen reader.
  3. Verify behaviour at 200% zoom and at 400% reflow.
  4. Add real alternative text once photography replaces the generated illustrations.
  5. Commission an independent audit before any public launch.

Questions about this document? Email customerservice@upbss.com or write to UPBSS Property Group, [registered office address], Edinburgh.