Accessibility standards

Essential accessibility standards for government communications. Apply these standards to make your content clear and accessible for all audiences.

Contents

Introduction

As government communicators, we have a fundamental responsibility to ensure all our audiences can access and understand our communications. 

These accessibility standards are critical for delivering clear, coherent and consistent government communications that truly reach all audiences. Following these standards is not only vital to meeting our legal obligations, but essential for delivering more effective communications that meet our audiences needs and help to build public trust.

The standards are organised into three clear categories to help you understand what is required:

  • those things which you must do (mandatory, for example, a statutory requirement);
  • those things which you should do (recommendations);
  • and those things you may do (approval).

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Website Content Accessibility Guidelines

The Website Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) cover a wide range of recommendations for making website content more accessible. 

Must do:

Clear print

Clear print is a set of principles that gives guidance on producing printed documents in a way which makes them accessible. Departments should adhere to the Guidelines for Producing Clear Print. Some of the key recommendations are listed below. 

Should do:

  • Font size: For documents use minimum 12 point, but consider 14 point if the audience comprises those with sight impairments (note that WCAG guidelines for digital communications requires you to ensure text can be resized by the user through, for example, the browser or operating system). 
  • Style: Use an accessible font (generally, sans serif fonts such as Arial and Helvetica are considered to be accessible); avoid italics and underline; use bold sparingly.
  • Font thickness: Avoid the light options.
  • Text alignment: Left aligned.
  • Text direction: Horizontal.
  • Line spacing: Recommended line spacing is 1.2 pt for standard documents; for font sizes greater than 14 pt, 1.5 line spacing would be recommended.
  • Document structure: Include headings for screen readers and ensure page numbers are positioned consistently.

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Use of language

All government communicators should follow the GOV.UK style guide and Writing for GOV.UK which cover a range of accessible communication topics. Please note many of these points are applicable to offline communications also.

Should do: 

  • Write clearly and simply. 
  • Choose easy and short words wherever possible.
  • Avoid compound sentence structures, make your average 15 words long. 
  • Use contractions such as ‘you’ll’ but avoid negative ones like ‘don’t’ or ‘can’t.
  • Use active voice instead of passive voice for example, ‘she loved him’ not ‘he was loved by her’.
  • Avoid unfamiliar foreign and Latin words, for ‘i.e.’ use ‘that is’, for ‘e.g.’ use ‘such as’ or ‘for example’ instead.
  • Avoid jargon and abbreviations: Spell out technical terms and acronyms if you need to use them.
  • Avoid idioms or figures of speech. 
  • Do not use ampersands (&) or other text symbols instead of words.
  • Use ‘from’ and ‘to’ rather than dashes or slashes (for example, ‘from 1 April to 31 March’)
  • Set the language of any content that is in a different language to the rest of the page.
  • Do not use block capitals for large amounts of text. 
  • Always use sentence case, even in page titles and service names. The exceptions to this are proper nouns. Sentence case is capitalisation where only the first letter is capitalised, for example, ‘Care and support for adults’, not ‘Care and Support for Adults’.

Hyperlinks provide links to another source of information such as a website page. For more information, see Scope’s How to write hyperlink text for better web accessibility.

Should do:

  • Hyperlinks should be descriptive and meaningful. For example, ’The government has announced a national test of the Emergency Alerts system will take place on Sunday 7 September at 3pm’.
  • Do not use generic phrases such as ‘(click) here’ or ‘find out more’. Generic links do not make sense out of context or tell users where a link will take them. They also do not work for people using screen readers, who often scan through a list of links to navigate a page. It’s important the links are descriptive so they make sense in isolation.
  • Do not use full website addresses, such as https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/independent-sentencing-review-final-report 
  • You can use a GOV.UK URL with a short descriptor after the forward slash, for example, https://www.gov.uk/alerts. 
  • Do not use shortened URLs with tinyurl, t.co or similar – these hide the destination, may confuse users with screen readers, and can break over time. Some services track how the links are used without informing the users.
  • Ensure links look different from surrounding text with at least two of the following: colour, size, bold, underlined – only use underline for hyperlinks which is the default of browsers. Do not add underline manually. 
  • Do not set links to open in a new tab or new window unless this is necessary for the service (such as separate guidance content that the user may want to check against as they go through the service), and if this is necessary, you should tell users that a new tab will open.

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Alt text for images, graphs and tables

Alt (or alternative) text ensures content is accessible to those who are visually impaired and use screen readers. Alt text provides a textual explanation for the image, graph, or table used, which are voiced by screen readers. Design102 has written a blog article on How to write good alt text.

Must do:

  • All informative images, graphics, and tables on websites or social media must include alt text. 
  • Provide alt text to describe the functionality of images used as images or buttons.
  • Provide empty alt text for decorative images.

Should do:

  • Text should be brief and concise with enough detail to fully explain the image.
  • Provide longer text descriptions and data for complex images such as charts and diagrams. 
  • Describe key elements only: If there is text in the image, write it all out in the description.
  • Do not include important textual information in an image. For more information read WCAG’s guidance on Understanding Success Criterion 1.4.5: Images of Text.   
  • Do not start with ‘Image of’: Screen readers typically announce the file type first, so this will cause duplication.
  • Do not misuse the space: It is not a place for key words, messages, jokes or hidden information.
  • Some social media platforms limit the use of alt text on posts with multiple images or have word limits, so you might need to add it to the body text of the post.
  • You can use Microsoft Accessibility Checker to identify images without alt text and suggest and edit wording.
  • Do not rely on auto-generated alt text. Check and amend it to provide more context for screen reader users, and to ensure accuracy.

Use of colour

The WCAG provides detailed guidance on use of colour. The Royal National Institute of Blind People provides guidance on use of colour in printed formats. 

Must do:

  • Follow relevant guidelines on colour combinations and contrasts. 
  • Check your website colour scheme for contrast standards (standard text 4.5:1, everything else 3:1).
  • Do not rely on colour as the only way to convey key messages.
  • If you are unsure whether your colours have sufficient contrast, you can use free online resources such as WebAIM: Contrast Checker or Color Contrast Analyzer in Accessibility Insights for Windows. 

Should do: 

  • Ensure strong contrast between text and background on an image. Dark text on a white or off-white background, or white text on a dark background provides the highest colour contrast.
  • Avoid pale colours on light backgrounds and dark colours on dark backgrounds.
  • In a graph or chart, use patterns or clear labels to differentiate the data.
  • Try to avoid green/red or blue/yellow, as they can be very difficult to read.
  • Text over images can be difficult to read, so consider using a solid background or opaque overlay. 
  • Think about using a smaller colour palette or check intersecting colours when using more than three.
  • Do not use colour to demonstrate information.
  • Do not use only faded or other colours for greyed out (non-active) content without other identifiers. 
  • Do not use text colours that are hard to see against a background. 
  • Check the colours you are using don’t reinforce gender stereotypes.

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Surveys, graphs, charts, and research

Should do: 

Moving imagery

Should do:

  • Follow guidance on moving imagery. For example, the WCAG’s guidance on Understanding Success Criterion 2.2.2: Pause, Stop, Hide, and World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) Web Accessibility Initiative: Making Audio and Video Media Accessible. The Home Office guidance on moving and flashing content is also a useful resource. 
  • If producing videos, make sure to avoid flashing lights and photography to which some people are sensitive.
  • Avoid moving images behind text: This can be hard for screen reader users and disabled people to view.
  • Keep italics and moving fonts to a minimum. 
  • Enable the Stop/Pause feature when a video plays automatically for more than 5 seconds. 
  • Avoid moving and auto-updating content if possible. 
  • Limit animations to five seconds. 
  • Provide a way to pause, stop or hide animated content, or control the frequency of updates. 
  • Allow users to adjust playback speed of your content and to increase and decrease the speed.
  • Make sure speech can be clearly heard and there’s good separation from any background noise.
  • Try to have the speaker in frame. 
  • Allow space for a sign language interpreter. 
  • Include a summary of your video within the body text of your article or post to ensure it is accessible to a blind or partially-sighted person.

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Audio description and captioning

Audio description (AD) is additional commentary that explains what’s happening on screen. AD describes body language, expressions and movements.

Captions are the audio in text form, displayed on the video screen. Closed captions can be turned on or off by the viewer with the click of a button. Open captions are embedded into the video and cannot be switched off by the viewer. 

A transcript is the text of all the content in a video, presented separately from it. An audio description describes visual information needed to understand the content of a video.

Must do:

  • All audiovisual content, including TV and cinema advertising, social and digital content, must be captioned where possible and closed (viewer-controlled) captioning is preferred.
  • Provide a transcript. Make it clear where to find the transcript. 
  • Provide an audio description for video that includes important visual information. Make it clear where to find the audio-described version if separate from the main video content.

Should do:

  • Open captioning may present difficulties for those with cognitive impairments. Where closed captioning is not possible, open (embedded) captioning is acceptable.
  • You should always provide captions that are synchronised with the audio.
  • Use different accessible colours to show when different people are speaking.

British Sign Language

British Sign Language (BSL) is a non-spoken language recognised by law and used by 151,000 people in the UK, over half of whom are Deaf. For more information read our guidance on BSL translating and interpreting for public communications.

Should do:

  • There is no statutory requirement for all government communications to be translated into BSL. But, all government departments are expected to consider where the use of BSL will be of most interest and importance to Deaf BSL users.
  • The BSL Act 2022 states that BSL should be actively considered for any public announcement on policy or changes to the law, including:
    • publication of plans, strategies, policy and other consultations and consultation responses
    • press conferences
    • social media
    • websites.
  • Although agencies are not in scope of the BSL Act 2022, there is an expectation they will align their communications with the Act.
  • Avoid lengthy translations: Generally, lengthy documents should not be translated in full. 
  • Assess capabilities: Registered and qualified BSL/English interpreters/translators should be used. All BSL interpreters used should be registered with the National Registers of Communication Professionals working with Deaf and Deafblind people (NRCPD). Currently all Deafblind interpreters do not need to be registered with NRCPD but must have over three years experience as a Deafblind interpreter and the relevant qualifications.
  • Easy to see: Ensure the translator is clearly visible and sized in proportion to the screen. Ensure the background is a plain colour such as royal blue (for Deafblind people) and not against a white background. Request the translator wear clothing opposite to their skin colour so their hands are visible. 
  • Plan ahead: Talk to your commercial team about procurement as early as possible.
  • Caption content: Caption BSL videos, ideally using closed-captions (user controlled).
  • Long or complicated: For complex content, consider using more than one translator/interpreter.
  • Seek diverse, inclusive feedback: Aim to seek views from BSL users and Deaf translators.
  • Always ask interpreters to use body language and facial expressions which are integral to communicating effectively in BSL.

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Video relay and text relay services

BT Relay UK is a service that helps those who are Deaf, hard of hearing or have speech impairments to communicate. BT Relay UK is free and can be used via an app or textphone.

Video Relay Services (VRS) enable users access to a BSL interpreter using a video connection on an electronic device such as laptop, PC, smartphone or a tablet. VRS are available on different platforms so check with your commercial and communication teams which platform is best for you.

Should do:

  • Think about how Deaf, hearing and speech impaired individuals can respond to your communications (and how are you telling them to communicate with you, are you providing only a phone number or can they email/ text or use a VRS system?)
  • Consider multiple channels for individuals to communicate with you, such as web chat, email, SMS, phone, and relay services. 
  • Use BT Relay for hearing and/or speech impaired individuals.
  • Use Video Relay Services for communicating with people whose first or preferred language is British Sign Language.

Accessible communication formats

Alternative formats include Audio, Braille, Easy Read, Large Print, and Makaton. 

Should do: 

  • Provide alternative (or accessible) formats in a timely way to meet the needs of users. This is a good example of making ‘reasonable adjustments’ under the Equality Act 2010.  

May do: 

  • Where appropriate, such as a major public health incident for example COVID-19 or other emergency, consider publishing Easy Read and other popular formats at the same time as other communications.
  • It may be challenging to produce alternative versions of materials at the same time. Departments should continue to engage key stakeholders regularly and ensure core communications are as accessible as possible. 
  • Where it is impractical to produce alternative formats upfront, but doing so would be desirable, you should consider committing to producing appropriate formats when circumstances allow, and within a feasible time frame.
  • It is important to consider formats early in the planning process to ensure you have budgeted, and built in time, for necessary procurement or translation services.
  • Producing large quantities of alternative formats may be unnecessary and wasteful, but it is important that departments consider how they would make information available in a timely way. 
  • Conduct research and stakeholder engagement to ensure your approach meets the needs of your intended audience.

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Hashtags

A hashtag is a word or phrase preceded by the hash symbol (#) that is used to identify messages on a specific topic on social media platforms and other digital communications.

May do: 

  • Use Title Case: Hashtags in Title Case #LooksLikeThis, with the first letter in each word of the hashtag capitalised. It is also known as Pascal Case.
  • Limit hashtags to 1-2 per post to avoid clutter and ensure readability.
  • Put hashtags at the end of posts.
  • Just like with post text, long and unwieldy hashtags may be confusing to a screen reader, and can interfere with readability and retention.
  • Do not use hashtags for the sake of it. Let them add context or help to connect conversations.

Emojis

Emojis are small digital icons or pictorial symbols that represent emotions, objects, activities, or ideas. They’ve become a popular way to enhance digital communication by adding visual elements that can convey tone, emotion, or provide visual shortcuts. 

May do:

  • Use no more than three emojis in a post.
  • Check what your emoji means – and check the alt text description.
  • Do not use an emoji to replace a word. Use emojis only to add context.
  • Do not use one emoji after another.
  • Do not put emojis between every single word.
  • Keep your social media handle and bio simple. Do not use emojis in your bio. 
  • Avoid using emojis in the middle of your content.
  • Make sure your emoji stands out against the background.
  • Do not repeat emojis or use them instead of bullet points.
  • Stick to yellow: Don’t be tempted to change the colour of an emoji.

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