Introduction to alternative formats

The University has a legal and moral responsibility under the Equality Act 2010 to provide any of its documents, leaflets, electronic resources etc in an alternative format if requested by a disabled user. Examples of alternative formats are providing a document in large print, Braille, printed on coloured paper, a paper copy of an electronic resource or vice versa or an electronic resource in an alternative way eg: Word document instead of a PDF. The following information explains how to offer this service and what it involves, points to keep in mind are:

• Documents do not need to be produced in alternative formats until a request has been received.
• However, all documents must carry a tagline informing readers of how they can request another format.
• You will save time when producing alternate formats if you create documents with accessibility in mind.
• It is the University who bears the cost of the providing an alternative format. The person requesting the information in an alternative format should not be asked to pay for it, as this is illegal.

As it is the responsibility of the person who produces a document to provide alternative formats upon request, each document must include this statement:

'if you require this document in an alternative format, such as large print or a coloured background, please contact [insert: name and contact details]'

The contact details provided should be the name of the individual responsible for the creation and maintenance of that document.

Two methods of contacting that individual should be given, such as phone and email or postal address and email.

This tagline should go on all documents, including minutes, agendas, student leaflets and so on, as a matter of routine. It should be in bold Arial font 14.

As long as it can be clearly spotted, this tagline can be placed at the beginning or end of the document.

It is impossible to make anything 100% accessible to everyone, as making alterations in one way may make materials accessible for one disabled person but inaccessible for another.

In addition, the requirements of disabled people, including those with similar disabilities may be significantly different.

The document tagline will take account of those with highly specific needs that are not met by general accessibility good practice.

Here is some information about alternative format types you may receive requests for:

• Large Print: some users may ask for documents with a larger font size. Simply update the original word file to a larger font size and print or email it to the requestor
• Coloured Paper: for some users, having content printed out on coloured paper makes it more accessible for them. Ensure you check what colour of paper they would like, and users should not be charged for any requests like this.
• Audio: It is rare that someone would request a document in an Audio format, however we do have some tools that may help with this. All university staff and students can use Read&Write TextHelp which can read out content aloud. There is also a service available at the University called Sensus Access which allows users to request documents in alternative formats, such as audio.
• Braille: As technology has advanced, there has been an increase in people using screen readers to access content, however there are still a number of visually impaired users who only use or prefer to use Braille. The University does not have an in-house Braille service, however if you are asked for this, please contact Viki Galt, Head of Disability Information for advice on how to source Braille alternative formats.

If you are involved in obtaining recommended course reading texts in alternative formats and having to contact publishers, the Publisher Lookup UK website provides useful guidance.

A video relay service is available, enabling British Sign Language users to contact public bodies and vice-versa. This service operates from 8am to 12 midnight, 7 days a week. Please visit the Contact Scotland BSL website for full details.” It is good practice to advertise this beside contact details such as on email signatures. It does not require the Public Body to have any specialist equipment.

AbilityNet has published guidance on accessible documents. 

BSL users can contact me via Contact Scotland BSL, the on-line British Sign Language interpreting service. Find out more on the Contact Scotland BSL website.

Contact Scotland BSL website

To request this document in an alternative format, such as coloured paper or large print, please contact Head of Disability Information, Viki Galt by email at viki.galt@ed.ac.uk