Accessibility statement

The Scottish Veterans Commissioner is committed to making its website accessible, in accordance with the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018.

This accessibility statement applies to scottishveteranscommissioner.org.

Compliance status

This website is partially compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines version 2.1 AA standard, due to the non-compliances and the exemptions listed below.

Non-accessible content

The content listed below is non-accessible for the following reason(s):

Non-compliance with the accessibility regulations

PDFs

There are five PDFs published before 23 September 2018 which don’t meet current accessibility regulations. As these documents are not required to access an essential service, they are exempt from accessibility regulations.
Any new PDFs we publish will meet accessibility standards or a fully accessible html alternative will be offered.

Progress Page

On the Progress Page and the Impact Page the content has been laid out using tables. Layout tables should be avoided as they can cause issues for assistive technologies such as screen readers as they can and do interpret them as data tables and announce rows and columns etc. Currently, the layout of these pages does not meet the following criteria: WCAG 1.3.1 Info and Relationships: Tables.
Replacing the layout tables with other HTML elements such as DIVs and styling them with CSS is not a viable alternative solution, as the content needs to be regularly and easily amended and updated.
The presentation of the content in this manner and the function of the tables is essential, as removing it would fundamentally change the information or functionality of the content. Information and functionality cannot be achieved in another way that would conform.

The content is not within the scope of the accessibility regulations

The accessibility regulations don’t require us to fix PDFs or other documents published before 23 September 2018 if they’re not essential to providing our services.

Preparation of this accessibility statement

This statement was prepared on 8 December 2023.

This statement was prepared following an accessibility audit carried out by The Gate in November 2023 using manual testing and accessibility software. The auditing tools used were WAVE Accessibility Checker, Lighthouse Chrome Extension and Chrome general browsing.

This statement was last reviewed on 13 December 2023.

Feedback and contact information

If you find any problems that are not listed on this page or you think we’re not meeting the accessibility requirements, please contact scottishveteranscommissioner@gov.scot.

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).

A really useful discussion with Abby Dryden and Bob Reid from @thedmws. It was good to hear about the projects they are leading and supporting across Scotland, their work with the veteran community and their plans for the future. Thank you both for taking the time to meet. #ScottishVeterans #VeteranSupport #ArmedForcesCommunity

6 hours ago

A few moments from October. I visited the Housing Options Scotland roadshow, which highlighted specialist health and employment support for the veteran community, and promoted the Scottish Veterans Fund Small Grants scheme. As the Remembrance period began, it was an honour to attend the opening services for the Gardens of Remembrance in Glasgow and Edinburgh. I also learned more about the Indian Army memorial taking shape at Kelvingrove. The Scottish Veterans Commissioner’s Office was pleased to be represented at an event celebrating BRAVEHOUND’s 10th anniversary and its work supporting veterans. And in Berlin, I attended an exhibition at the British Embassy recognising the work of the Kutenholz community. Led by Debbie Bülau BEM, the community has created memorials to those who fell in the area during the Second World War and continues to connect with their families Read my full October round-up through the link in our bio. #ScottishVeterans #Veterans #ArmedForcesCommunity #Remembrance

8 hours ago

A valuable day at the 51 Brigade HQ Scotland Firm Base Conference 2026. It was encouraging to see serving personnel, Families Federations and support organisations coming together to share ideas and learn from one another. I was pleased to provide an update on my 2026 Progress Report and hear insightful contributions supporting the Armed Forces vision of “Join Well, Serve Well, Leave Well”. #ArmedForcesCommunity #ScottishVeterans #Veterans

1 day ago

Celebrating 10 years of @bravehound_uk. The Scottish Veterans Commissioner’s Office was pleased to be represented at a special anniversary event featuring stories and poetry from Major General Tim Hodgetts (rtd). Actor and BRAVEHOUND patron, Jason Isaacs had also recorded a selection of the poems, including A Conversation with my Dog, written especially for the anniversary. Congratulations to the whole BRAVEHOUND team on 10 years of supporting the veteran community. #BRAVEHOUND #Veterans #VeteranSupport

3 days ago