How committed are we to accessibility?
Southampton Wire, published by Sliema Media Limited (Malta Business Registry C 84217), is fully committed to making our website accessible to everyone, including people with disabilities, and we actively work to meet WCAG 2.2 AA standards and the EU Accessibility Act requirements effective 28 June 2025. We believe trustworthy local journalism should be available to all readers, regardless of ability.
This commitment is embedded in our editorial mission and technical development. Our editor-in-chief William Ashby oversees accessibility as part of editorial standards, and our managing editor Sarah Mills ensures workflows consider accessibility needs. Our fact-checking lead Diane Forbes also monitors published content for potential barriers. We treat accessibility as an ongoing process, not a one-time fix, and regularly review the site’s performance against recognised guidelines.
What standards do we follow?
We follow the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2 at Level AA, and we align with the European Accessibility Act which comes into full effect on 28 June 2025. In the UK we also take guidance from the Equality Act 2010 to ensure our digital services are inclusive.
Our compliance is checked through automated testing tools and manual audits conducted by our editorial team. We document our approach in our editorial policy and fact-checking policy, and we report on progress through our our story page. Any significant changes to accessibility features are communicated to our newsletter subscribers via the newsletter sign-up page.
What you can expect from us
You can expect a website that is perceivable, operable, understandable and robust for all users. We have implemented clear navigation, sufficient colour contrast, resizable text, and keyboard-friendly interactions across southamptonwire.co.uk.
We use semantic HTML structures, provide alternative text for images, and ensure that multimedia content includes captions or transcripts where appropriate. All published articles are drafted by a named writer, reviewed by an editor, and fact-checked – and this workflow now includes a basic accessibility check. Our local politics editor Kieran Doherty and community correspondent Lucy Palmer also help identify where reporting formats could be more inclusive. Sponsored material is clearly labelled as such, and commercial relationships never determine editorial conclusions – this is outlined in our sponsored content policy.
How can you report an accessibility issue or request support?
If you encounter any barrier or have specific accessibility needs, please contact our accessibility team at accessibility@southamptonwire.co.uk. We aim to respond within two business days and will work to resolve issues as quickly as possible.
You can also reach us by phone on +44 20 4587 9485 or use our contact page. If you prefer to write, our registered office is Level 3, Tower Business Centre, Tower Street, Swatar, Birkirkara BKR 4013, Malta. Your feedback helps us improve – we treat every request as a priority and involve our editor-in-chief William Ashby if a fix requires editorial or technical changes. For unresolved concerns, you can follow our complaints procedure.
What about third-party content and external links?
While we strive to ensure all content on our own site meets accessibility standards, we cannot guarantee the accessibility of third-party content or external websites we link to. We encourage users to let us know if they encounter inaccessible external resources.
Our partnerships and sponsored content are clearly labelled, and we require partners to meet reasonable accessibility standards as outlined in our advertising and affiliate disclosure. Where we embed content from other services – such as maps, videos or social media feeds – we choose providers that offer accessible components where possible. This statement will be reviewed and updated at least annually, with the latest version always available at /accessibility-statement/.
Questions or concerns?
If you have any questions or concerns about this accessibility statement or our practices, please contact us. We value your input and are committed to making our journalism accessible for everyone.
You can email accessibility@southamptonwire.co.uk, call our editorial line on +44 20 4587 9486, or write to William Ashby, Editor-in-Chief, at the registered address above. This statement was prepared by Sliema Media Limited and is reviewed annually. It was last updated in line with the EU Accessibility Act deadline of 28 June 2025. For further information about how we handle your data, please see our privacy policy and cookie policy.