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Our standards
Web Development - September 2006
web.development@kirklees.gov.uk
Content
We provide content for people who live or work in Kirklees, as well as anyone else who is interested in the area. A wide range of people use our site and we aim to provide good, relevant and up-to-date content for everyone. We aim to cover any important issues, events, activities and other information concerning the Kirklees area, even where the council is not the main source of the information. We also provide extensive links to neighbouring local authorities and many other local sites.
If you can't find the content that you're looking for on this site, please use our Can't find it online? form to tell us about it. We will do our best to provide the information that you need, and will add new content to the site where it is relevant for other users.
If you find any out-of-date information on this site, please use our Feedback form to tell us about it. We will update the information as soon as possible, and remove any obsolete information from the site.
 We are registered with the Internet Content Rating Association (ICRA). We use ICRA's system of describing content so that users know our pages are suitable for their family to use. You can find out more by visiting the Internet Content Rating Association web site.
Design
We design all new features on this site with usability in mind. This means that we always think about how easy our pages will be for you to use. We try to use very clear names for menu items and links, and to put the most important information first on the page. As each user is different, we provide many different ways of getting to the same information. Whether you like to browse through menus, use the search box or follow related links, you should always be able to find what you need. When you use our online forms and services, it should always be clear what information you need to fill in. Wherever you need further guidance, you should always find helpful tips or examples on the same page.
If you find any of the pages on this site difficult to use, please use our Feedback form to tell us about it. We will make the page easier to use if we can. If we can't change the design, we will let you know why.
If you can't find the content that you're looking for, please use our Can't find it online? form to tell us about it. If we already have the information, we will let you know how to find it. If we don't already have the information, we will do our best to provide it for you.
Plain language
We aim to provide information that is written clearly and is easy for everyone to understand. We try not to use jargon or overly complicated language. When we do need to use unfamiliar terms, you should always find that they are explained clearly. We want you to be able to understand everything on this site the first time that you read it.
If you find any information on this site which is unclear, please use our Feedback form to tell us about it. We will make the information clearer if we can. If we can't change the text, we will let you know why.
 In 2004 we were awarded the Internet Crystal Mark by the Plain English Campaign.
Response times
When you use this site to send an email or fill in an online form, you can expect your message to be read and dealt with quickly. If you ask for a reply, we aim to acknowledge your message within two working days. If we can’t give a full response straight away, we aim to send you a full reply within six working days.
When you use an online council service form (for example, to order a garden waste collection or renew your library books) your request will go straight to the relevant department. For many of these services, we give you a ‘Frontline’ reference number after you have filled in the form. This makes it easier for council departments to track your request and let you know what progress has been made. ‘Frontline’ is the name of the system that the council uses to do this. You can also choose to have your reference number sent to you by email, or sent by SMS text message to your mobile phone.
If you are ever unhappy about the amount of time it takes to deal with your request, please fill in our Complaints, comments and compliments form. All council departments aim to reply to complaints within 6 working days.
Site availability
We want this site to be available for you to use at any time. However, sometimes there are brief, unavoidable interruptions in our service. For example, we might need to carry out some essential maintenance in order to improve our site's performance. When we plan to do any maintenance work, we always aim to let our users know about it before hand. If any work is planned, you will see a notice in the centre of the home page explaining when the site will be unavailable, how long for, and why.
You can see details of any planned interruptions on our Scheduled maintenance page.
Our site can also be affected by unexpected problems, and sometimes these are beyond our control. For example, there could be a problem with our power supply. When unexpected problems happen, we aim to get the site up and running again as quickly as possible. If the problem is only affecting part of our site, you will see a notice in the centre of the home page explaining which pages are affected, and telling you how long the problem is likely to last for.
Due to both planned maintenance and unexpected problems, we cannot guarantee that this site will be available all the time. However, you can expect the availability of our site to be very high - our target is for the site to be available 99% of the time.
You can find more details about the performance of this site on our Web site statistics page.
Web standards
We use and support the standards and guidelines for web publishing that are recommended by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C). W3C is an international consortium that aims to develop consistent web standards, for the benefit of all users of the World Wide Web. One of their goals is to make sure that everyone (regardless of what computer you are using, which software you have, where you live or what your skills are) gets to share in the many benefits of the Web. By following W3C’s guidelines, we can help to meet that goal.
 The code used to create this web site is valid Hyper Text Mark-up Language (HTML) 4.01 Transitional.
 This site conforms to Level A of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 1.0.
 The style sheets used to display this web site are valid level 2 Cascading Style Sheets (CSS2).
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