Accessibility

Our commitment to accessibility

The Department of Corrections is committed to making content simple to read, understand, and navigate on all devices.

We aim to meet the New Zealand Government Web Accessibility Standards and follow the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2 (Level AA).

This includes ensuring that our websites:

  • Work on common browsers, devices, and platforms.
  • Are compatible with assistive technologies such as screen readers, screen magnifiers, speech recognition software, and keyboard-only navigation.
  • Allow users to adjust text size, zoom, colours, and contrast settings.
  • Present content in a clear, structured, and understandable way.

Tools to help you use this website

Increasing the zoom level (quick keys)

Most browsers let you change the zoom level to make text and images bigger or smaller:

  • Windows: Hold Ctrl and press + to zoom in or hold Ctrl and press – to zoom out.
  • Mac: Hold Command and press + to zoom in or hold Command and press – to zoom out.
  • On mobile: Use pinch-to-zoom or check your device’s Display & Accessibility settings.

Increasing the zoom level (browser settings)

  • Edge: Open the Menu (three dots in the top‑right corner) and look for the Zoom option. Click the + button to zoom in, or – to zoom out.
  • Chrome: Open the Menu (three dots in the top‑right corner). Use the Zoom controls next to the percentage number.
  • Firefox: Open the Menu (three lines in the top‑right corner). Use the + or – buttons next to the Zoom level.
  • Safari: In the top menu bar, go to View. Choose Zoom In or Zoom Out.

Adjusting text size, colours, and contrast

If you need to change how text looks:

  • In your browser, look for:
    Settings > Appearance / Accessibility

You can:

  • Change the font size
  • Increase contrast
  • Use dark mode or high contrast mode
  • Override page colours with your own preferences
  • On Windows, you can turn on High Contrast Mode (in Settings > Accessibility).
  • On Mac, go to System Settings > Accessibility > Display to increase contrast or reduce transparency.

Using PDFs

Some documents on our site are provided as PDF files.

Most devices can open PDFs automatically.

If not, you can install a free PDF reader such as Adobe Acrobat Reader.

Using other file types (Word, Excel, etc.)

We may provide downloadable documents in formats like DOCX, XLSX, or PPTX.

These usually open with Microsoft Office or Google Workspace.

If you don't have this software, Microsoft provide a free Word Viewer and free Excel Viewer.

Site map

Our site map provides links directly to all our main pages in one place, arranged in an easy to scan list.

New Zealand Relay Service

New Zealand Relay Service (NZ Relay) is a free service that enables people with hearing and speech communication difficulties to use the phone.

NZ Relay’s trained relay assistants can help you to contact the Department of Corrections.

Contact us

If you require further assistance to use this website or have suggestions about how we could make our content more accessible, please contact us at webmaster@corrections.govt.nz.