Accessibility statement for the MarLIN website

This accessibility statement applies to the Marine Life Information Network (MarLIN) website (www.marlin.ac.uk) and associated sub-domains. This website is run by the Marine Biological Association (MBA).

The MarLIN website has been subject to an accessibility audit. Therefore, users should be able to:

  • change colours, contrast levels, and fonts;
  • zoom in up to 400% without the text spilling off the screen and without content being truncated or overlapping;
  • navigate the content using just a keyboard;
  • navigate the website using speech recognition software; and
  • listen to the website using a screen reader (including the most recent versions of JAWS and NVDA).

The website is written for a wide audience and uses plain English wherever practical. However, specialist language is unavoidable due to the scientific nature of most of the content (for example, when describing species or explaining the structure of communities and habitats). Technical and scientific terms are explained in our dedicated glossary and specific terms lists.

How accessible this website is

We know some parts of this website are not fully accessible:

  • most older PDF documents (issued before 23 September 2018) are not fully accessible, and
  • third-party mapping tools may not be fully accessible.

Feedback and contact information

If you experience any difficulties with accessing the information provided on our website or wish to request information in alternative formats, please contact:

Harvey Tyler-Walters, MarLIN Project Manager & Acting Editor (htw@mba.ac.uk) or MarLIN (marlin@mba.ac.uk)

We attempt to reply to enquiries within five working days, depending on staff availability. If your enquiry is urgent, please contact the editor directly.

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 are not happy with how we respond to your request or complaint, you can contact the Equality Advisory and Support Service (EASS).

Technical information about this website’s accessibility

The Marine Life Information Network (MarLIN) is committed to making its website accessible, to as wide an audience as possible in accordance with the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018.

Compliance statement

The website has been tested against the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines version 2.2 standard. This website is partially compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2 AA standard due to the non-compliances and exemptions listed below.

Non-accessible content

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

Non-compliance with the accessibility regulations

We are aware of the following issues:

·         Not all PDFs are provided in accessible formats (see below).

Disproportionate burden

All documentation and reports produced before 23 September 2018 may not be accessible, and it would be a disproportionate task to reissue the PDFs retrospectively. All documentation and reports produced after 23 September 2018 follow accessibility guidelines on layout, navigation, and formatting, and are provided in PDF format, but may not be fully accessible due to the limitations of the software used. However, we will endeavour to release reports and documents in alternative open-source formats on request within 10 working days. 

Content that is not within the scope of the accessibility regulations

Compatibility with browsers

The MarLIN website is designed for use with most widely used web browsers and should be compatible with recent versions of assistive software. The MarLIN website is not compatible with browsers older than three major versions or mobile operating systems older than five years.

Technical specifications

The MarLIN website relies on the following technologies to work with the particular combination of web browser and any assistive technologies or plugins installed on your computer.

  • HTML
  • WAI-ARIA
  • CSS
  • JavaScript

These technologies are relied upon for conformance with the accessibility standards used.

Preparation of this accessibility statement

This statement was prepared on [2026-07-10]. The statement was last reviewed on [2026-07-29]. The statement is based on guidance provided by the UK Government and the W3C Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI).

This website was last tested on [2026-07-01] against the WCAG 2.2 AA standard. This statement was prepared after an accessibility audit of the most viewed pages on the MarLIN website carried out by Zounou Ltd between February and April 2026. The website was tested using automated accessibility testing tools (e.g. Axe DevTools), in a range of browsers (Chrome, Edge, Safari, Firefox), and used several common screen readers (NVDA, JAWS, IOS VoiceOver, Android TalkBack) and Dragon Naturally Speaking. Testing included additional Disabled User Testing (DUT). Subsequent revisions of the website and additional internal testing were undertaken by our website team between April and July 2026, aided by the WAVE tool (developed by the WIA project) and the Accessibility Insights for Web tools application.

Formal approval of this accessibility statement

This Accessibility Statement is approved by: Acting Editor - Harvey Tyler-Walters

Last updated 2026-07-29