This accessibility statement applies to online.arts.ac.uk

Moodle is the University of the Arts London (UAL) and its subsidiaries’ Virtual Learning Environment (VLE). Moodle is an open-source project, led and coordinated by Moodle HQ and this means that certain aspects of its design are not under UAL's control.

Moodle state that the VLE meets WCAG 2.1AA level compliance on version 4.x. UAL are using version 4.5 of the LMS. Read the Moodle Accessibility statement for further details. Moodle content can be produced by any teacher or student. As such it will never be possible to say with 100% certainty whether all of Moodle is fully accessible or not. However, UAL and its subsidiaries aim to ensure that teaching, learning, and assessment resources built in, and/or uploaded to Moodle are fully accessible to all users.

Moodle includes an 'Accessibility Checker’ in the Tiny MCE Text Editor which scans course content and alerts users to a range of accessibility issues that may be found within the text.

We commit to ensuring this website is as accessible as possible and we want as many people as possible to be able to use it. This means that you should be able to:

  • access the website regardless of the device and browser you are using
  • zoom in up to 300% without the text spilling off the screen
  • navigate most of the website using just a keyboard
  • navigate most of the website using speech recognition software
  • listen to most of the website using a screen reader (including the most recent versions of JAWS, NVDA and VoiceOver). Find out about the screen readers that Moodle supports.
  • We have also tried to make the website text as easy to understand as possible although we recognise we have more work to do on this.

AbilityNet has advice on making your device easier to use if you have a disability.

If you need support, please contact the Disability Service for help and advice. More information on the Disability Service.

Recite Me

We use Recite Me on Moodle, which is a cloud-based assistive toolbar. Recite Me allows you to customise Moodle content so that you can consume it ways that work for you. The toolbar includes:

  • a screen reader
  • reading aids such as a ruler, magnifier, and dictionary
  • a screen mask
  • colour contrast options
  • text re-sizing
  • the option to download text as an audio MP3 file
  • alternative font options including OpenDyslexic
  • a language translation tool

A user guide is available on the Recite Me website.

Recite Me works by placing cookies on your device. Information about these cookies is available on UAL Online's Cookies page.

The Recite Me translation tool uses machine translation and text that is translated on the site may not be entirely accurate.

The Recite Me toolbar meets the WCAG 2.2 AA standard. Read the Siteimprove accessibility report.

In some cases, Recite Me may not be entirely compatible with other technologies and plugins that we have on Moodle. We are constantly reviewing and working to improve the accessibility across Moodle.

Ally

Ally is an accessibility tool for staff, providing analysis/remedy of accessibility issues for files hosted within Moodle. It can provide a detailed course level report illustrating the level of accessibility for files throughout the course.

Third-party accessibility links

Several third-party tools are integrated into or linked from Moodle. Detailed information about the accessibility of these products and statements of compliance can be found below:

  • Class Collaborate VPAT
  • Panopto accessibility information and VPAT
  • Turnitin accessibility information and VPATs
  • H5P accessibility information
  • MS Teams accessibility information and VPAT

A VPAT, or Voluntary Product Accessibility Template, is a document prepared by a product developer or vendor which describes how well the product conforms to the accessibility standards of Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act in the USA. They evaluate how accessible a product is against WCAG standards.

How accessible is Moodle?

Moodle is a complex platform that contains a large quantity of user-generated content, third-party plugins and custom development.

At a platform level the Moodle Accessibility Statement addresses the core issues. Version 4.2 is currently WCAG 2.1 AA certified as of Jan 2024. UAL uses Moodle 4.5, which is being updated to meet WCAG 2.2 AA standards. Follow progress of the updates for Moodle 4.3 up to 4.5.

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

  • File upload windows for activities such as assignments are not fully keyboard accessible Compliance status Moodle is partially compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines version 2.2 AA standard. Non-compliances and exemptions are below Non-accessible content The content below is non-accessible for the following reasons: Non-compliance with the accessibility regulations
  • Some text elements rely on visual styling that is not programmatically determinable. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 1.3.1 (Info and Relationships)
  • File upload windows aren’t fully keyboard accessible. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 2.1.1 (Keyboard)
  • Some user interface components lack an accessible name. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 4.1.2 (Name, Role, Value)

What we're doing to improve accessibility

The upgrade to Moodle 4.5 in July 2025 brings further opportunity for UAL to improve on accessibility. The list below highlights key planned activities and improvements in relation to accessibility, over the next 12 months:

  • A Teaching and Learning Accessibility best practice group has been established to discuss and implement accessibility improvements on our digital learning platforms and across our colleges
  • Continuously improve our guidance to staff on how to ensure content uploaded to Moodle meets accessibility guidelines
  • The Digital Accessibility Hub is now available on the main UAL website where you can find information and useful guidance on how to optimise the accessibility features on our different platforms.

Feedback and how to get in contact

If you need information on this website in an alternative, more accessible format please raise a request using MySupport.

Please include details of the content you need and the required format or the service you are trying to access. We will then work with the team who own the content or the service to get you what you need.

We aim to provide you with an initial response within two working days and will provide clear information about how we will deal with your request.

Reporting accessibility problems with this website

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, please raise a request using MySupport.

We aim to provide you with an initial response within two working days and will provide clear information about how we will deal with your enquiry or complaint

If you feel we have not answered your enquiry or complaint satisfactorily, please contact us again. We will escalate your enquiry or complaint to the Head of Product, Teaching & Learning, who will work with the team who provides the service/content to get you a response.

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, contact the Equality Advisory and Support Service (EASS).

Our commitment and legal obligations

We commit to ensuring the communications we produce are clear and accessible to the widest range of people.

We recognise our obligations under The Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018 and the Equality Act 2010.

Preparation of this accessibility statement

This statement was prepared on 1st August 2025.