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Hastings Public Library, Hastings, MI

Website Accessibility Statement

Website Accessibility Overview

This accessibility statement applies to the Hastings Public Library's website at www.HastingsPublicLibrary.org.

Part of the goal of this website is to provide accessibility to of its content and services for individuals with disabilities who require additional access support. Resources have been dedicated to enhancing the website's user-friendliness and accessibility, driven by the aligned mission with ReciteMe that every individual deserves to experience and engage with digital content equally. 

Measures to support accessibility

This website takes the following measures to ensure accessibility:

  • Include accessibility as part of our mission statement.
  • Include accessibility throughout our internal policies.
  • Integrate accessibility into our procurement practices.

Conformance status

The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) define requirements for designers and developers to improve accessibility for people with disabilities. It defines three levels of conformance: Level A, Level AA, and Level AAA. This website aims to conform to WCAG 2.1 level AA. 

Accessibility Efforts & Disclaimer

We remain dedicated to the ongoing enhancement of the accessibility of our website and services. This commitment is rooted in the belief that ensuring a smooth, inclusive, and unrestricted experience for individuals with disabilities is a shared ethical responsibility and that all patrons should have access to the library's resources.

We are always striving to enhance the accessibility of all pages and materials on our website, but it is possible that some content has not yet been fully aligned with accessibility standards. This could be attributed to the fact that we may not have identified the most suitable fix to improve the user experience.

Recite Me Assistive Technology 

We want as many people as possible to be able to use our website. To provide additional support to aid a more inclusive user experience, we provide the Recite Me assistive technology tool. This Toolbar enables all website visitors to customize their experience through a range of options to suit their online accessibility and language needs. 

The Recite Me toolbar provides text-to-speech functionality, fully customizable styling features, reading aids, and a translation tool with over 100 languages, including 65 text-to-speech voices and many other features.

This means that when the toolbar is activated by the user, they can:

  • Listen to the website using text-to-speech functionality
  • Customize background, text, and accessibility tool colors
  • Modify the font, line height, or spacing of text
  • Zoom in up to 200% without text spilling off the screen
  • The text will reflow in a single column when you change the size of your browser window
  • Navigate the website using just a keyboard
  • Translate the website into a different language
  • Download MP3 files of webpage text
  • View website pages in text-only mode

Reporting Accessibility Problems with this Website

We’re always looking to improve the accessibility of our website. If you encounter content that you cannot access,  please contact us via phone or email and we will attempt to provide you with an accessible alternative. Note responses could take up to 3 business days.

If you are not happy with how we have responded to the issue you have raised with us about the accessibility of our website, then please contact the FCC Disability Rights Office.

Third-party content and functionality

We may make use of third-party resources that embed content on our website. Wherever possible, we will ensure these conform to accessibility guidelines.

Technical Information About this Website’s Accessibility

The Library is committed to making its website accessible to all visitors, in accordance with all applicable laws, and we aim for conformance with the WCAG 2.1 (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.1) at level AA. 

Technical specifications

Accessibility of this website relies on the following technologies to work with the particular combination of web browsers and any assistive technologies or plugins installed on your computer:

  • HTML
  • CSS
  • JavaScript

These technologies are relied upon for conformance with the accessibility guidelines used.

What we’re doing to improve accessibility

Our accessibility journey is continuing. We regularly review our website and its content to identify and fix known issues. We do this by running a check of our website with the Recite Me Accessibility Checker or other online tools such as WebAIM.

This statement is reviewed at least once a year and updated as needed.

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