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Accessibility and the law

The Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018 states that public sector websites published after 23 September 2018 must be compliant with accessibility regulations by 23 September 2020.

According to the Government Digital Service (GDS) this means that all public sector websites must:

• meet Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG 2.1) to level AA
• make websites and apps perceivable, operable, understandable and robust (POUR)
• publish an accessibility statement

Government Digital Service guidelines

GDS has published a detailed summary of the legislation and its implications for public sector bodies - Understanding accessibility requirements for public sector bodies.

What this means is that UKHSA must offer an accessible option when publishing content, or we are breaking the law and breaching government and GDS guidelines. What used to be advisory, has now become compulsory. This is particularly the case for public sector bodies, so Public Health England is under scrutiny to ensure that we are compliant.

The 4 principles of accessibility

All our digital content must be:

Perceivable - Users must be able to perceive the information being presented (it can't be invisible to all of their senses)

Operable - Users must be able to operate the interface (the interface cannot require interaction that a user cannot perform)

Understandable - Users must be able to understand the information as well as the operation of the user interface (the content or operation cannot be beyond their understanding)

Robust - Content must be robust enough that it can be interpreted reliably by a wide variety of user agents, including assistive technologies; users must be able to access the content as technologies advance (as technologies and user agents evolve, the content should remain accessible)

The acronym for these four principles is POUR.

Web Content Accessibility (WCAG 2.1) guidelines

The GDS guidelines are themselves based on the internationally recognised Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG 2.1). Key principles include:

• don't rely on colour alone to communicate information
• provide accessible alternatives to visual content
• provide clear navigation through pages and documents 
• ensure documents are clear and simple
• design documents, graphics and other content to work on multiple devices

It is the law that all web and mobile content be accessible to all users, no matter what the severity of their disability, temporary or permanent. 

If we don't make the web pages and the documents we publish accessible, we are breaking the law.

Why accessible web content is better for users

Even if it hadn't become law, all research suggests that in the long run users prefer to use accessible websites. This applies to all users, not just people with disabilities. Accessible websites and documents are:

• more straightforward to navigate
• compatible with a wider range of software programs, for example, not just limited to Microsoft Office
• easy to read on multiple devices
• easier to scan and access the relevant information

Resources

1. The benchmark for web accessibility is the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1.  They provide detailed guidelines and an at-a-glance overview, among a host of other resources.

2. The World Wide Web Consortium - the main international standards organization for the World Wide Web - hosts the Web Accessibility Initiative. Alongside explanations of all the main aspects of accessibility, the site hosts a set of videos showing how people with various disabilities or requirements use the web - Web Accessibility Perspectives: Explore the Impact and Benefits for Everyone.

3. The Government Digital Service has published copious content about accessibility. Good places to start are the Accessibility Campaign landing page and Understanding accessibility requirements for public sector bodies.

4. WebAIM is a not-for-profit organisation dedicated to furthering knowledge, technical skills and tools to improve web accessibility. One of these is its WAVE or Web Accessibility Evaluation tool. Paste any URL into the field at the top to get an automatic assessment of  a web page's accessibility. (NB automated accessibility testers like this are generally thought to pick up only 20-30% of accessibility issues on a web page – the rest must be done by human checking.)

5. GDS guidance and blogs refer to the set of guidelines drawn up by Worcester County Council for applying accessibility in a public sector context. These are known as SCULPT (short for Structure, Colour and contrast, Use of images, Links, Plain English and Table structure). There is a useful video describing how the Worcester Council digital team developed the SCULPT guidelines

Why pages need to be made accessible

The internet is increasingly at the heart of our public life. More and more information and services are now delivered online.

Due to this rapid growth and shift of services to online platforms, accessibility has grown in importance.

Accessibility means that we design and publish content for the web, in a way that allows everyone (including but not limited to people with disabilities) to understand and read that content.

If we do not make pages accessible, it means that users who have access requirements are actively excluded and discriminated against.

The UK Government has committed to making GOV.UK accessible, and Public Health England must ensure that all publications and guidance meets those accessibility standards.

Legal requirements and reputational risk

Accessibility is increasingly becoming a legal issue, as organisations and individuals are making their voices heard to ensure that inaccessible websites are updated and modernised.

There are examples in the press of companies who have been sued for breaching accessibility guidelines - this includes Apple in the United States, and low-cost airlines and cruise providers in the UK.

The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities had made it illegal for public bodies to publish inaccessible publications.

Public Health England could suffer real reputational damage if we publish inaccessible content unlawfully - we all have a commitment to ensure we stay within the legal guidelines.

Common misconceptions

It's a common misconception that certain publications do not need to be made accessible. Here are a few of the common arguments:

Accessibility is now the first and foremost consideration for any web publications from public sector bodies, no matter how the publications have previously been designed or released.

We need to find new ways to design and publish content so that it is still visually appealing - but also works for all users equally.