Guidance

Accessibility Statement – Student Finance Lifelong Learning Entitlement (LLE)

Updated 30 October 2026

This accessibility statement applies to the service for Student Finance England for the Lifelong Learning Entitlement (LLE). It does not apply to other content on the GOV.UK domain published by the Student Loans Company (SLC).

This service is run by SLC. We want as many people as possible to be able to use this service. For example, that means you should be able to:

• change colours, contrast levels and fonts using browser or device settings

• zoom in up to 400% without the text spilling off the screen

• navigate most of the service using a keyboard or speech recognition software

• listen to most of the service using a screen reader (including the most recent versions of JAWS, NVDA and VoiceOver)

We’ve also made the service text as simple as possible to understand.

AbilityNet has advice on making your device easier to use if you have a disability.

1. How accessible this service is

We know some parts of this service are not fully accessible. For example:

• some links on the Tuition Fee Loan balance results page do not take users directly to the guidance content described in the link text

• some links to supporting forms, including the Current Year Income (CYI) form, do not take users to the form described in the link text

• some users cannot enter names containing special characters, like spaces, apostrophes or hyphens

• screen reader users may hear the wrong information announced for the file upload button, including the name of a previously uploaded file

• screen reader users may hear content after the footer has been reached, which can make it harder to understand the page structure

• some users may not have enough time to respond to the session timeout warning before their session expires

• the virtual assistant is not fully accessible to some screen reader users, keyboard users and users with low vision

• some PDF documents available through the service, including documents in the ‘View correspondence’ section, may not be fully accessible

1.1 Feedback and contact information

If you find any problems not listed on this page, are unable to access all or parts of the service, or think we’re not meeting accessibility requirements, contact accessibility@slc.co.uk.

If you need information on this service in an alternative format, contact alternative_format_correspondence@slc.co.uk.

We’ll consider your request and get back to you as soon as possible.

1.2 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.

If you’re not happy with how we respond to your complaint, contact the Equality Advisory and Support Service (EASS).

2. Technical information about this service’s accessibility

The Student Loans Company is committed to making its services accessible, in accordance with the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018.

2.1 Compliance status

This service is partially compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) version 2.2 AA standard due to the non-compliances listed below.

3. Non-accessible content

The content listed below is non-accessible for the following reasons.

3.1 Non-compliance with the accessibility regulations

• The file upload control exposes an incorrect accessible name, which may cause assistive technologies to announce misleading information to users. This fails WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 4.1.2 Name, Role, Value (Level A).

• In some parts of the service, screen readers announce content after the footer has been reached. This means content is not presented in a logical reading order. This fails WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 1.3.2 Meaningful Sequence (Level A).

• Some links on the Tuition Fee Loan balance results page do not take users directly to the guidance content described in the link text. Instead, users are taken to the GOV.UK homepage and must take additional steps to find the information they need. This fails WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 2.4.4 Link Purpose (In Context) (Level A).

• Some links to supporting forms, including the Current Year Income (CYI) form, do not take users to the form described in the link text. Instead, users are taken to a page stating that the page is under construction. This may prevent users from accessing the information they need and continuing their journey. This fails WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 2.4.4 Link Purpose (In Context) (Level A).

• Some name fields do not accept valid names containing spaces, apostrophes or hyphens. Users may receive an error when entering their name correctly and may not be given sufficient information about what values are accepted. This fails WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 3.3.1 Error Identification (Level A) and 3.3.2 Labels or Instructions (Level A).

• Some users may not have enough time to respond to the session timeout warning before their session expires. This fails WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 2.2.1 Timing Adjustable (Level A).

• The virtual assistant has accessibility issues affecting screen reader users, keyboard users and users with low vision. These include issues with programmatic structure, keyboard access, focus visibility, colour contrast and reflow when content is viewed at 400% zoom. This fails WCAG 2.2 Success Criteria 1.3.1 Info and Relationships, 4.1.2 Name, Role, Value, 2.1.1 Keyboard, 2.4.7 Focus Visible, 1.4.3 Contrast (Minimum), 1.4.10 Reflow and 1.4.11 Non-text Contrast.

3.2 Disproportionate burden

We have not made any disproportionate burden claims for this service.

4. What we’re doing to improve accessibility

We are actively working to improve the accessibility of our services, forms and documents and regularly test our services for accessibility.

Some of the issues described in this statement relate to third-party systems. We have raised these issues with the supplier and are working with them to improve accessibility.

Accessibility issues identified through testing are prioritised and addressed based on their impact on users. We regularly review the service and update this statement as improvements are made.

If you are unable to access any part of this service, contact accessibility@slc.co.uk.

We will review and update this statement by the end of 2026.

5. Preparation of this accessibility statement

This statement was prepared on 30 September 2026. It was last reviewed on 30 September 2026.

This service was tested between January and June 2026 against the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2 AA standard.

Testing was carried out by the Digital Accessibility Centre (DAC) and SLC using a combination of automated testing, manual accessibility testing and testing with disabled users.

The scope of testing included:

• applying for and submitting a student finance application

• applying for Disabled Students’ Allowance (DSA)

• completing and submitting the DSA Expenses form