Erklärung zur digitalen Barrierefreiheit

Accessibility Statement

General Information about the Website

Violence Prevention Network is one of Europe’s leading practitioner hubs working nationally and internationally with over 120 experts. Our common goal is to support first-line practitioners, policy makers and researchers to bring about positive change in local efforts to prevent and counter violent extremism worldwide.

By building on our first-hand insights and experiences from daily casework with radicalised offenders and at-risk individuals, we work to empower whole-of-society partnerships, bridge capacity gaps of key actors and provide practitioner input for sustainable policies and practical solutions.

Use of Our Online Services

The website provides:

  • Information about Violence Prevention Network and its work in preventing and countering violent extremism
  • Content designed for professionals, policymakers, researchers, cooperation partners, and interested members of the public
  • Descriptions of projects, programmes, publications, and events
  • Access to materials, resources, and background information
  • Contact options for enquiries and further information

Navigation is provided via the main menu and the footer area. Key content is generally accessible within a maximum of three clicks.

Scope of This Statement

This accessibility statement applies to the website published under the domain www.violence-prevention-network.com and all associated subpages and subdomains (e.g., blog.domain.de, app.domain.de), provided they are attributable to the same provider.

Responsible entity:

Violence Prevention Network gGmbH
Alt-Reinickendorf 25
13407 Berlin
post@violence-prevention-network.de
+49 30 917 05 464 

Our Commitment

Accessibility today is an integral part of modern websites – it is a quality feature, enhances user experience, and ensures legal compliance. Enabling full access for all user groups reflects our understanding of digital responsibility and social inclusion.

Our Approach

This means in practice:

  • Semantically correct front end: clean HTML structures, meaningful ARIA roles, consistent component logic
  • Conceptual accessibility: focus guidance, logical tab order, keyboard operability, understandable interactions
  • Editorial clarity: clear language, legible typography, descriptive links, alternative texts
  • Accessible media: videos with transcripts and subtitles, high-contrast thumbnails, visual descriptions where applicable
  • Technical compatibility with assistive technologies: support for prefers-reduced-motion and other system-based user preferences
  • Sustainable development: regular audits, action plans, and continuous maintenance of digital accessibility

Applicable Standards

We aim to make our website accessible in accordance with the following legal and normative foundations:

  • German Ordinance on Accessible Information Technology (BITV 2.0)
  • German Equal Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities Act (BGG)
  • Directive (EU) 2016/2102
  • WCAG 2.1 – aiming for conformance level AA+

Results of the Accessibility Audit

The website was subjected to a comprehensive accessibility audit in August 2025. The review was carried out in accordance with the requirements of WCAG 2.1 (conformance level AA) and the legal obligations set out in BITV 2.0, the German Disability Equality Act (BGG), and Directive (EU) 2016/2102.

Conformance Level:

The website is largely, but not yet fully, accessible.

Identified Barriers (Excerpt):

The audit revealed, among other things, the following issues:

  • Missing alternative texts for images
  • Ambiguous link text without contextual information
  • Incomplete semantic HTML structure
  • Missing keyboard navigation for some functions
  • Inadequate text contrast in several areas
  • Language attributes not consistently used
  • No skip links or visible keyboard focus
  • Use of image files instead of text elements

Action Plan

A comprehensive relaunch of the website is currently planned for the end of the second quarter of 2026, subject to budget availability.

Until then, the editorial team and technical maintenance staff will assess to what extent minor improvements can be made without significant technical effort or additional costs – and where feasible, these will be implemented step by step.

This statement will be updated in the event of substantial changes to the website or upon publication of a new version.

Testing Procedure & Methodology

The review was carried out using the following procedure:

  1. Manual Testing
    • Keyboard operability
    • Screen reader tests (VoiceOver, NVDA, JAWS)
    • Focus guidance and visual orientation
  2. Automated Tools
    • Axe
    • Lighthouse
    • WAVE
  3. Conceptual Analysis
    • Structure, navigation, semantic markup logic
    • Assistive technology compatibility
  4. Editorial Review
    • Language, alternative texts, ARIA attributes, clarity

More information about the testing procedure is available upon request.

Objective: AA+ as Standard

Our objective is to reliably meet the legal requirements of WCAG 2.1 level AA and additionally implement selected elements of enhanced digital accessibility (partially WCAG 2.1 AAA) where appropriate and technically feasible.

Implementation will occur through re-audits, module-specific updates, and project-related maintenance processes. All relevant measures, deadlines, and responsibilities will be documented transparently.

Reporting Barriers

This website is undergoing an ongoing accessibility audit. Identified optimisation potentials and planned measures will be published after completion of the audit.

If you encounter any accessibility issues not listed here or have suggestions for improvement, please let us know. To help us process your feedback, please indicate the page or function concerned.

Contact:

Notice on the Mediation Procedure (§ 16 BGG)

If no satisfactory solution is achieved after contacting us, you can initiate a mediation procedure under § 16 of the German Equal Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities Act (BGG). The BGG Mediation Service mediates conflicts on digital accessibility between affected individuals and the responsible entity.

Contact for Mediation Service BGG:

Notice Regarding This Accessibility Statement

This accessibility statement is based on a template provided by ALEKS & SHANTU GmbH, which also conducted the accessibility audit of this website.