WACure Accessibility Statement

WaCure is a patient communication service provided by Mayfair Laboratories, designed to help patients and their carers interact with their GP surgery more easily using WhatsApp. It supports key functions such as appointment booking, referrals, sick notes, test result delivery, repeat prescriptions, and more. It also enables proxies (e.g. parents, carers) to make requests on behalf of others.

We are committed to making our digital services accessible, inclusive, and easy to use for all patients—regardless of disability, impairment, age, language proficiency, or access method.

This accessibility statement outlines our commitment, current conformance status, known issues, and our roadmap to improve accessibility.

WaCure aims to comply with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1, Level AA. These guidelines are the internationally accepted standard for ensuring digital content is usable and accessible to people with a wide range of abilities.

We are also aligned with:

• NHS Digital's Service Standard and Design Manual
• GOV.UK Design System and Accessibility Guidelines
• The Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) Accessibility Regulations 2018

Our goal is to provide equal access to all users, regardless of how they interact with technology, whether by keyboard, screen reader, voice input, mobile device, or assistive technologies.

We've designed WaCure to support the following key accessibility features:

• Clear, structured content with consistent navigation
• Compatibility with screen readers (NVDA, VoiceOver, TalkBack)
• Text contrast ratio compliant with WCAG standards
• Font sizes that can be resized without loss of content or functionality
• Keyboard navigation for all interactive elements
• Logical tab order and focus styles
• Use of ARIA labels to describe actions for assistive technologies
• WhatsApp conversation flows that avoid timeouts and allow for user pauses
• Support for large text display and zoom up to 300%
• Plain English language where possible, avoiding unnecessary medical or technical jargon

WaCure is primarily delivered via WhatsApp, which introduces some third-party limitations:

• Screen reader behaviour may vary by platform (e.g. iOS vs. Android)
• Keyboard navigation may be restricted on certain devices
• Visual formatting is limited by WhatsApp's own UI framework

We mitigate these limitations by:

• Keeping all messages short, clear, and sequential
• Numbering options and using plain text formatting
• Avoiding reliance on images or emojis for meaning
• Offering alternative formats or direct human support where requested

In future versions of WaCure that include a mobile app or web portal, we will:

• Conduct formal WCAG 2.2 audits
• Provide a skip-to-content link and consistent headers
• Implement resizable buttons and accessible modals
• Offer customisation options for colour themes and font sizes

We are actively working to address the following limitations:

• PDF documents (e.g. GP letters) may not yet be fully accessible to screen readers. We are adding tagging and plain-text alternatives.
• Some attachments (scanned documents, medical certificates) are image-based and may not be readable without OCR. We plan to offer accessible summaries for these.
• WhatsApp Web has limitations with voice input and keyboard-only navigation that are beyond our direct control.

We are continuously improving WaCure's accessibility. Planned improvements include:

• Formal accessibility audit by an external NHS Digital partner (by Q4 2025)
• In-app accessibility feedback module (Q3 2025)
• Enhanced proxy and carer access flows to support users with cognitive or language challenges
• Development of an assistive onboarding guide with audio support
• Integration of BSL video explanations for key user journeys

If you experience difficulty using any part of WaCure or need information in a different format (like accessible PDF, large print, easy read, audio recording, or braille), please contact us:

• 📧 Email: info@mayfairlabs.co.uk
• 📬 Address: WaCure Support, Mayfair Laboratories, 23 Stanton Avenue Manchester, M20 2PG

We'll consider your request and respond within 5 working days.

If you are not satisfied with our response, you can contact the Equality Advisory and Support Service (EASS):

• Website: https://www.equalityadvisoryservice.com/
• Phone: 0808 800 0082

This statement was prepared on 20 May 2025. It was last reviewed on 20 May 2025.

An internal audit was performed by Mayfair Laboratories' product team. External accessibility testing is planned on a quarterly basis with NHS-affiliated users.