The Fachhochschule des Mittelstands (FHM) is committed to making its website accessible in accordance with the applicable legal requirements.

Legal basis
This declaration of accessibility applies to the FHM website at https://www.fhm-international.de/.

It is based on the following legal provisions:

• the German Act on Equal Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities (BGG),
• the State Inclusion Act NRW (or the relevant state laws at the respective locations of FHM),
• the law to implement the directive (EU) 2016/2102 on barrier-free access to the websites and mobile applications of public bodies (Barrier-free Websites Act - BfWebG),
• the Barrier-free Information Technology Ordinance (BITV 2.0).

The benchmark for digital accessibility is the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 at conformance level AA and the European standard EN 301 549.

Status of compliance with the requirements
The FHM website is currently only partially accessible. The technical basis is continuously checked and revised to further improve accessibility.

Non-accessible content
Some of the website content is not yet fully accessible. This includes, among other things:

• Alternative text: Not all images and graphics have descriptive alternative text.
• Audiovisual content: Subtitles for audio and video elements are still missing in some cases.
• Structural elements & ARIA labels: Some structural information is not clearly recognizable for screen readers.
• Contrasts & visual appearance: In some cases, color combinations do not yet meet the required contrast ratio.
• Keyboard usability: Keyboard navigation is limited in some places.
• Language labeling: Some content in foreign languages is not correctly marked up.
• Forms and status messages: Some input fields and feedback (e.g. search results or form confirmations) are not fully accessible to assistive technologies.
• Easy-to-read language: There is currently no complete version of the website in easy-to-read language.

The FHM is constantly working to remedy these deficiencies.

Creation date of this declaration
This declaration was created on 09.04.2025. It was based on a self-assessment in accordance with § 3 para. 1 BfWebG.
 

Feedback and contact
If you encounter barriers on our website or require information that is not freely accessible, we would be grateful to receive your feedback:

Fachhochschule des Mittelstands (FHM)
E-mail: marketing@fh-mittelstand.de
Website: https://www.fhm-international.de/

We will endeavor to review your comments as quickly as possible and to rectify the situation.
 

Enforcement and arbitration proceedings
If you believe that you have been disadvantaged by the lack of accessibility of our website and have not received a satisfactory response to your feedback, you can contact the arbitration board under the German Act on Equal Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities (BGG).

The conciliation body is tasked with settling disputes between people with disabilities and public authorities out of court. The procedure is free of charge. The involvement of a legal representative is not required.

Contact details for the conciliation body
Conciliation body under the German Act on Equal Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities at the Office of the Federal Government Commissioner for Matters relating to Persons with Disabilities

Mauerstraße 53
10117 Berlin
Telephone: 030 18 527-2805
Fax: 030 18 527-2901
E-mail: info@@schlichtungsstelle-bgg..de
Website: www.schlichtungsstelle-bgg.de