Accessibility Statement.
Healthcare must be accessible to everyone. This page explains what we have done to make our clinic and website usable for all patients, what we are still working on, and how to ask for an adjustment if you need one.
Our commitment
We want our website and our clinic to be accessible to as many people as possible. This includes patients with visual, hearing, motor, cognitive, or speech impairments, as well as patients who use assistive technology (screen readers, magnifiers, voice control) or who simply prefer larger text or simpler layouts.
This statement covers the website at mhwclinic.co.uk and accessibility at our physical clinic at 97-99 Whitechapel Road, London E1 1DT.
How accessible the website is
We have designed and built the new MHW Clinic website to meet the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 at Level AA as far as is reasonably practicable. This is the international accessibility standard referenced by UK government, the NHS, and most major UK healthcare providers.
Specifically, on this website you can:
- Change colours, contrast levels, and fonts using your browser or operating system settings
- Zoom in up to 200% without text spilling off the screen
- Navigate the whole website using only a keyboard (no mouse required)
- Navigate the whole website using speech recognition software
- Listen to most of the website using a screen reader (NVDA, JAWS, VoiceOver, TalkBack)
- Use the website on a phone, tablet or desktop — the layout adapts automatically
What we have done
- Semantic HTML — pages use proper heading structure, landmarks and labels so screen readers can navigate content correctly.
- Alt text on images — meaningful images have descriptive alt text. Decorative images are marked so screen readers skip them.
- Colour contrast — text colours meet WCAG AA contrast ratios (4.5:1 for normal text, 3:1 for large text).
- Keyboard navigation — all interactive elements are reachable and operable by keyboard.
- Form labels — all form fields have visible labels and clear error messages.
- Focus indicators — the current keyboard focus is always visible.
- Plain English — we avoid clinical jargon in patient-facing content. Where medical terminology is necessary, we explain it.
- No autoplay — we do not play sound or video automatically.
- Reduced motion — we respect the “prefer reduced motion” setting and limit animations for users who set it.
What we have not done (yet)
We want to be honest about the parts of the website that are not yet fully accessible. We are working to fix these.
- Some older PDF documents linked from our website may not be fully tagged for screen readers. If you need a different format, please contact us — we will provide one.
- Some clinical photographs use decorative styling that may make alt text repetitive. We are reviewing this.
- Embedded third-party booking systems (Pabau) and patient registration (Hospital Note) are designed by third parties. Their accessibility is outside our direct control, but we have raised this with our suppliers.
- Our blog at mhwclinic.co.uk/blog runs on WordPress and may not consistently meet WCAG 2.1 AA. We are reviewing.
If anything else doesn’t work for you, please tell us — see “Reporting accessibility issues” below.
Physical accessibility at the clinic
Our clinic at 97-99 Whitechapel Road is on the ground floor, with:
- Step-free entrance from the street
- Wide doors for wheelchairs, walkers and pushchairs
- Accessible WC on the ground floor
- Step-free access to all consultation rooms
- Seating in the waiting area with armrests for patients who need support standing
- Hearing loop at reception (if you use a hearing aid, please switch to T-coil)
- Quiet space available if waiting in the main area is overwhelming — please ask reception
- Companions welcome — you can bring a friend, family member or carer to any appointment
Adjustments we can make
If you have a specific need, please tell us in advance and we will do our best to accommodate. Examples of adjustments we have made for patients include:
- Longer appointments for patients who need more time to communicate, understand, or feel comfortable
- First or last appointment of the day for patients who find busy waiting rooms difficult
- Written summaries of consultations for patients with memory or processing difficulties
- Easy-read versions of consent forms and patient information where possible
- Large-print appointment letters and prescriptions
- Interpreter services in spoken languages and British Sign Language — please request at booking
- Female or male clinician preference wherever possible — just ask
- Phone or video consultations if travelling to the clinic is difficult
- Trusted-person attendance — a relative or carer can be with you at any consultation
Please let us know what you need when you book or when you arrive. Adjustments are always free of charge.
Requesting information in another format
If you need any information from this website in a different format — large print, easy-read, audio, BSL, or another language — please contact us. We will provide it free of charge.
- Phone: 020 7916 0029 (AI receptionist answers 24/7; a real team member will follow up)
- Email: info@mhwclinic.co.uk
- WhatsApp: 07903 284 189
- In person: 97-99 Whitechapel Road, London E1 1DT
Reporting accessibility issues
We’re always working to improve accessibility. If you find something that doesn’t work for you on this website, please tell us. We’ll respond within 5 working days.
Send your feedback to info@mhwclinic.co.uk or call us. Please include:
- The web page you were trying to use (URL)
- What you were trying to do
- What happened (or didn’t)
- What kind of device or assistive technology you were using, if relevant
Enforcement
If you contact us about an accessibility issue and you’re not happy with our response, you can raise the matter formally through our Complaints Policy. You can also report disability discrimination to the Equality Advisory and Support Service (EASS) at equalityadvisoryservice.com or 0808 800 0082.
How we test the website
We test the website using:
- Automated accessibility tools (axe DevTools, Lighthouse, WAVE)
- Keyboard-only navigation testing
- Screen-reader testing (NVDA on Windows, VoiceOver on iOS/macOS)
- Manual testing for colour contrast and zoom behaviour
Tests are repeated after any major design change or content update.
This statement
This accessibility statement was prepared in line with the Equality Act 2010, the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) Accessibility Regulations 2018 (which we follow as best practice though we are a private provider), and the WCAG 2.1 AA international standard.
It is reviewed every 12 months or whenever significant website changes are made.