Accessibility statement for Sokra
This statement covers Sokra, the science practice service for pupils, teachers and parents.
This statement is not finished. The following still need to be confirmed before it is published:
- the mailbox that will receive accessibility problem reports
- how quickly somebody undertakes to reply
- who publishes this service, and therefore owns the duty
- how somebody asks for content in another format
How accessible this service is
We aim to meet WCAG 2.2 AA, the standard named in the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018.
This service is partially compliant with that standard. The table further down says where each requirement stands.
Of the 55 requirements that apply, 10 are checked automatically every time the service changes, 17 are partly checked, 17 have not been assessed, and 11 do not apply to this service.
What we do not know yet
Automated testing finds roughly a third of accessibility problems. It can tell us a control has no name. It cannot tell us whether a description is accurate, whether a heading describes what follows, or whether the service makes sense when it is heard rather than seen.
This service has not yet been tested by a person using a screen reader, and it has not had an independent audit. Until both have happened, we cannot say it is accessible, only that nothing we know how to detect is wrong.
Reporting a problem with this service
A contact route for reporting problems has not been set up yet. This has to be in place before this statement is published.
Enforcement procedure
The Equality and Human Rights Commission enforces these Regulations. If you are not happy with how we respond to your complaint, contact:
- England, Scotland and Wales: the Equality Advisory and Support Service (EASS), and then the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC), which enforces the Regulations
- Northern Ireland: the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland (ECNI)
How we tested this service
This service was checked against WCAG 2.2 AA using automated testing that runs on every change: a standard rule engine over every screen, checks for keyboard use, recordings of what assistive technology is given, and a check that every page is covered by something.
It has not yet been checked by a person using a screen reader, and it has not had an independent audit. That is why most of the table below reads "not assessed" rather than "supports": automated testing finds roughly a third of accessibility problems, and the rest turn on judgement that a tool cannot make.
Where each requirement stands
Generated from the service's own test suite, so it cannot claim more than the tests support.
| Requirement | Level | Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1.1.1 Non-text Content | A | Partially supports | Every image is checked for a name, and the wording is graded. Whether a description is accurate needs a person; the service currently holds one image. |
| 1.2.1 Audio-only and Video-only (Prerecorded) | A | Not applicable | This service has no audio or video content. |
| 1.2.2 Captions (Prerecorded) | A | Not applicable | This service has no audio or video content. |
| 1.2.3 Audio Description or Media Alternative | A | Not applicable | This service has no audio or video content. |
| 1.3.1 Info and Relationships | A | Partially supports | Structure is checked by the scanner and by snapshots of what the browser exposes. Whether authored lesson content is structured well is not. |
| 1.3.2 Meaningful Sequence | A | Partially supports | Reading order is recorded for the pupil journey and held to an approved baseline. Teacher and parent journeys are not. |
| 1.3.3 Sensory Characteristics | A | Not assessed | Needs somebody to read the wording and check nothing relies on shape or position. |
| 1.4.1 Use of Color | A | Partially supports | The ladder strip carries a text alternative rather than colour alone. Other state colours have not been checked for a second cue. |
| 1.4.2 Audio Control | A | Not applicable | This service has no audio or video content. |
| 2.1.1 Keyboard | A | Partially supports | Five screens are walked by keyboard. The rest are not. |
| 2.1.2 No Keyboard Trap | A | Partially supports | A full pass forwards and back is checked on the five screens with baselines. |
| 2.1.4 Character Key Shortcuts | A | Not assessed | The service appears to define no single-character shortcuts, but nothing checks it. |
| 2.2.1 Timing Adjustable | A | Not assessed | Sessions expire on an idle and an absolute timeout. Whether somebody is warned and can extend has not been checked, and this criterion turns on exactly that. |
| 2.2.2 Pause, Stop, Hide | A | Partially supports | The one animation, the tutor's typing indicator, stops under prefers-reduced-motion. |
| 2.3.1 Three Flashes or Below Threshold | A | Not applicable | The service has no flashing, blinking or video content. The one animation, the tutor's typing indicator, pulses well below three times a second and stops entirely under prefers-reduced-motion. |
| 2.4.1 Bypass Blocks | A | Supports | A skip link is the first thing focus reaches, and it moves focus to the content. |
| 2.4.2 Page Titled | A | Partially supports | Every page has a title. Whether each is distinct and describes its page is not checked. |
| 2.4.3 Focus Order | A | Partially supports | Held to an approved order on five screens. |
| 2.4.4 Link Purpose (In Context) | A | Partially supports | Links have names. The lesson library repeats 'Edit' and 'Copy' across rows, which the criterion permits from context but which is poor to listen to. |
| 2.5.1 Pointer Gestures | A | Not applicable | Nothing requires a path-based or multipoint gesture. |
| 2.5.2 Pointer Cancellation | A | Not assessed | |
| 2.5.3 Label in Name | A | Not assessed | Needs checking that every visible label appears in the accessible name. |
| 2.5.4 Motion Actuation | A | Not applicable | Nothing responds to device motion. |
| 3.1.1 Language of Page | A | Supports | Checked on every screen the scanner visits. |
| 3.2.1 On Focus | A | Not assessed | |
| 3.2.2 On Input | A | Not assessed | |
| 3.2.6 Consistent Help | A | Not assessed | The tutor chat appears on the practice screen only. Whether that counts as a help mechanism needing consistent placement has not been decided. |
| 3.3.1 Error Identification | A | Partially supports | Errors are shown and announced. They are not tied to the field they belong to. |
| 3.3.2 Labels or Instructions | A | Partially supports | Every control the scanner reaches has a name. Whether the instruction helps is a judgement nobody has made. |
| 3.3.7 Redundant Entry | A | Not assessed | The password reset and two-step flows ask for information more than once in places. |
| 4.1.2 Name, Role, Value | A | Partially supports | Checked on every screen scanned. Custom controls are few and simple. |
| 1.2.4 Captions (Live) | AA | Not applicable | This service has no audio or video content. |
| 1.2.5 Audio Description (Prerecorded) | AA | Not applicable | This service has no audio or video content. |
| 1.3.4 Orientation | AA | Not assessed | Nothing locks orientation, but no check confirms it. |
| 1.3.5 Identify Input Purpose | AA | Partially supports | Credential fields carry autocomplete tokens. Nothing checks they stay. |
| 1.4.3 Contrast (Minimum) | AA | Supports | Every text pairing in all four palettes, computed and held to 4.5:1, and checked again in the browser against what was actually painted. |
| 1.4.4 Resize Text | AA | Supports | Text doubled in size on the pupil screens with nothing cut off. |
| 1.4.5 Images of Text | AA | Partially supports | The only image today is the logo, which the criterion exempts. The grader lists every image the service serves, so a new one is visible, but nothing decides whether a picture is carrying text that should have been text. |
| 1.4.10 Reflow | AA | Supports | No sideways scrolling at 320 pixels on the pupil screens. |
| 1.4.11 Non-text Contrast | AA | Supports | Controls and focus indicators held to 3:1 in every palette. |
| 1.4.12 Text Spacing | AA | Supports | The spacing the criterion names is applied and nothing is cut off. |
| 1.4.13 Content on Hover or Focus | AA | Not assessed | The profile menu is a disclosure rather than a hover target, but nothing checks it. |
| 2.4.5 Multiple Ways | AA | Not assessed | |
| 2.4.6 Headings and Labels | AA | Not assessed | Headings and labels exist. Whether they describe is a judgement nobody has made. |
| 2.4.7 Focus Visible | AA | Supports | Every focus stop compared against its own unfocused state on five screens. |
| 2.4.11 Focus Not Obscured (Minimum) | AA | Supports | Checked against the sticky masthead, which is the only thing that could obscure focus. |
| 2.5.7 Dragging Movements | AA | Not applicable | Nothing requires dragging. |
| 2.5.8 Target Size (Minimum) | AA | Not assessed | The scanner's rule is turned off here: it measures the hidden radio inside an answer option rather than the bar around it, which is what a pupil taps. The criterion exempts that, but no check confirms the other controls are large enough. |
| 3.1.2 Language of Parts | AA | Not applicable | The service is in English throughout. This changes the moment translated content ships, and this row will need revisiting then. |
| 3.2.3 Consistent Navigation | AA | Not assessed | |
| 3.2.4 Consistent Identification | AA | Not assessed | |
| 3.3.3 Error Suggestion | AA | Partially supports | Import errors say what is wrong. Sign-in deliberately does not, so as not to confirm which half of a credential was right. |
| 3.3.4 Error Prevention (Legal, Financial, Data) | AA | Partially supports | Actions that lose work are confirmed first. Nothing here is legal or financial. |
| 3.3.8 Accessible Authentication (Minimum) | AA | Not assessed | Two-step sign-in uses a code that can be pasted, and recovery codes exist. Whether the whole flow avoids a cognitive function test has not been assessed. |
| 4.1.3 Status Messages | AA | Supports | Flash messages carry a status or alert role, and the snapshots record that they reach assistive technology. |
Preparation of this statement
This statement was prepared on 18 August 2026. It was last reviewed on 18 August 2026, and is due for review by 18 August 2027.