Gardening Hackney Accessibility Statement

This Accessibility Statement explains how Gardening Hackney and our local community initiatives support accessibility across our digital and in-person services. We aim to ensure that everyone who is interested in gardening in Hackney can access information, book sessions, join community growing spaces and participate in workshops with dignity and independence.

We follow recognised accessibility standards and continuously work to improve the experience for people with diverse needs. Our commitment covers the Hackney gardening area, outreach events, and the online presence used to coordinate activities.

Key principles include:

• Perceivable information and user interface components;
• Operable functionality via keyboard and assistive technologies;
• Understandable content and predictable interactions.

We aim for full conformance with WCAG 2.1 AA standards where practicable. This means we evaluate colour contrast, text resizing, clear focus styles, descriptive headings and consistent navigation to meet the WCAG 2.1 AA compliance criteria. Where a feature is not yet fully compliant, we document the issue and prioritise fixes based on user impact.

For visitors using screen readers, our pages provide semantic structure with headings, lists and landmarks to make content easier to navigate. We also supply alternative text for images in most places and ensure that interactive controls include accessible names and roles for reliable interpretation by assistive technology.

Navigation across our site and event pages supports robust keyboard navigation. You can tab through links, form fields and controls in a logical order, and visible focus indicators help you see where you are on the page. We test common sequences like tabbing, shift+tab, arrow keys, and form submission using keyboard-only scenarios.

When engaging with the broader Gardening Hackney area — from communal beds to pop-up planting days — we aim to make physical activities accessible. Signage uses clear fonts and high contrast, pathways are considered for mobility needs, and seating and rest points are provided where possible. We coordinate with venue hosts to ensure an inclusive environment for community gardening sessions.

We keep accessibility in mind for maps, event calendars and registration forms. Forms have clear labels, error messages are descriptive and positioned to be noticed by screen readers, and interactive calendars provide keyboard-friendly controls and ARIA attributes where appropriate.

Known limitations: there may be specific third-party content, older PDF documents or legacy pages related to Hackney gardening projects that do not fully meet WCAG 2.1 AA. We maintain an improvement log and schedule updates; if you encounter a barrier, please tell us so we can prioritise remediation.

How to request accessibility support: If you need information in an alternative format, help accessing an event, or assistance with registration, please contact our team using the organisation’s general contact channels. We respond to accessibility requests promptly and will provide materials in large print, plain text, audio, or another reasonable format on request. We do not publish personal contact details in this statement.

We also welcome reports of accessibility problems so we can resolve them quickly. Reports help us improve Hackney gardening access for everyone, and we aim to acknowledge requests within a short period and provide an estimated resolution timeframe.

Ongoing improvements: our accessibility roadmap includes periodic audits, user testing with people who have lived experience of disability, staff training on inclusive communication, and prioritised fixes for technical barriers. We value inclusive design and strive to ensure that Hackney gardening activities are welcoming, safe and usable for all.

Legal compliance: where applicable, we align with equality and accessibility obligations and aim to exceed minimum requirements where feasible. Our approach balances pragmatic action with continuous improvement to reach accessibility and inclusion goals across the Gardening Hackney community.

Accessibility is a team effort. Volunteers, partners and staff are encouraged to follow accessible practices and report barriers. We publish updates to this statement after significant changes and maintain a transparent process for reviewing access-related decisions.

Thank you for your interest in inclusive Gardening in Hackney. We welcome collaboration to make Hackney gardening more accessible and to share learning across community projects.