Accessibility Statement

We have worked hard to make sure our site is accessible to all. This has involved reviewing content, refining the navigation and making technical changes to ensure we are compliant with WCAG 2.2.

We know some parts of this website are not fully accessible. You can see a full list of any issues we currently know about in the non-accessible content section of this statement.

We can provide appointment letters and clinical patient information leaflets in other formats. Please let the service you are a patient of know of any communication or information needs you have related to a disability. They will then do their best to meet these needs.

This could include appointment letters in large print, Braille, Easy Read or electronically and/or a British Sign Language interpreter, SSE interpreter, Makaton, Deaf/blind manual interpreter or lip-speaker or speech to text reporter at your appointment. Please let the service know if you require a hearing loop, extra appointment time, a quiet space to wait and be seen, to be accompanied by a carer / family member or to have any other disability related adjustment. This requirement to make disability related adjustments also applies to carers and parents of patients if they themselves have a disability.

For general enquiries related to accessible information, please contact the Communications team on swbh.comms@nhs.net or tel: 0121 507 5303

Our website does offer a translation service which can translate much of the content on our site in to a range of languages. To enable this:

1. Open a web browser and go to www.swbh.nhs.uk
2. In the top right corner, click on ‘Speak’ button, this will launch our ‘Reachdeck’ accessibility system and give you access to a range of tools including translations. Select your preferred language and the site will automatically change to your preferred .

The translations are performed by an online automated translation system and as a result may contain errors. Please use the translation as a rough guide only. SWB NHS Trust does not accept any liability for the accuracy of translations on this site or reliance upon information contained in those translations.

This website is speech-enabled, which means that you can enable a range of tools to make this website easier to use and have the site read aloud to you. The software is called Reachdeck and is available on smartphones, tablets, PCs and Mac.

Reachdeck is a suite of tools that provide reading support on websites that reads website content out loud, highlighting each word as it is spoken in a high quality, human-sounding voice. Reachdeck is particularly useful for those with visual impairments, learning disability, difficulties, dyslexia or those with English as a second language.

Other features include:

• Dual-Colour Highlighting
• Text Magnification
• Talking Dictionary
• Talking Translator
• MP3 Maker
• Screen Masking

For further help and assistance regarding this product please see their website(opens in a new tab).

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 swbh.comms@nhs.net

If you have problems accessing information on this website, or would like any of our work in a different format like a more accessible PDF, large print, easy read, audio recording, or braille, please contact the Communications Team with details.

Communications Department
Sandwell & West Birmingham NHS Trust,
Trinity House,
Sandwell Hospital,
Lyndon,
West Bromwich
B71 4HJ

Tel: 0121 507 5303
Email: swbh.comms@nhs.net

We’ll consider your request, and aim to get back to you within 7 working days.

Please do not contact the Communications Department with any appointment related questions, as we do not have any access to patient data. Instead please call the Contact Centre.

If you would like the translation of site content into a language which is not available, please do get in touch with the Communications team so we can arrange this for you.

We’re always looking to improve the accessibility of the website. If you find any problems which aren’t listed on this page, or think that we’re not meeting the requirements of the accessibility regulations then please email swbh.comms@nhs.net to let us know.

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 not happy with how we respond to your complaint, contact the Equality Advisory and Support Service (EASS)(opens in a new tab).

Sandwell and West Birmingham Hospitals NHS Trust is committed to making its website accessible, in accordance with the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018.

We regularly check the web pages to ensure the website is accessible to wide demographics.

• We scan the website using Axe DevTools and Reachdeck Accessibility Auditor.
• We assess the web pages for keyboard accessibility.
• We also test the individual page’s color contrast using Web AIM.

This website is partially compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines version 2.2(opens in a new tab) AA standard, due to the non-compliances and exemptions listed below.

• Our site contains a large number of PDFs created in previous years, especially relating to service or information publications. Where these are no longer being updated, we do not intend to recreate them in accessible versions as this would be a disproportionate burden.
• Where these are being updated, information will be converted where possible to accessible-friendly formats. This will take place within the normal cycle of updates.

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

Some of our PDFs and Word documents are essential to providing our services. Many of these documents are aimed at an internal clinician audience but are published on the website for ease of access and transparency.

Not all of these documents are fully accessible. We are currently working on fixing essential documents or replacing them with accessible HTML web pages where possible. This work will be completed by end of December 2025. Not all documents will be fixed as some predate the regulations or are exempted for other reasons. If you need accessibility adjustments for a document please contact us using the methods above.

The accessibility regulations do not require us to fix PDFs or other documents published before 23 September 2018(opens in a new tab) if they’re not essential to providing our services. We are not currently aware of having any documents that fall into this category.

Some of the content hosted on our website or linked to by us is created by third parties. We have no control over the accessibility of these documents and encourage third parties we work with to make their documents as accessible as possible. If you need accessibility adjustments for a document that may be controlled by a third party, please contact us using the methods above.

We do not plan to add captions to existing pre-recorded video content that was published before the 23rd September 2020. This content is exempt from the regulations. All new video content we produce will have appropriate captions, audio descriptions and transcripts as necessary.

Maps embedded from digital mapping services such as Google Maps, and maps made available in formats such as PDF – are exempt from meeting the accessibility regulations where they are used for non-navigational purposes. However, we will always attempt to provide as much related information as possible in text, e.g. postcodes and directions.