Accessibility statements and the regulations
Accessibility is a legal duty, and a public one
The Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018 apply to parish and town councils. They require a council’s website to meet the WCAG AA accessibility standard and to publish an accessibility statement. Government monitoring now tests against WCAG 2.2 AA, which is the version we build every site to.
The rules cover the documents on your website as well as the pages. PDFs and other documents published since September 2018 should be accessible too, which is why our training shows clerks how to publish them properly.
What an accessibility statement must include
The accessibility statement follows a model published by the government. It is meant to be an honest, practical note to residents rather than a badge. It should cover:
- who runs the website, and what disabled users should be able to do on it
- how accessible the site is, and any known problems, in plain English
- how to ask for information in another format, and how quickly the council will reply
- how to report an accessibility problem
- the enforcement procedure, naming the Equality and Human Rights Commission
- whether the site is fully, partially or not compliant with the standard, and why
- any content that is not accessible, with a plan to fix it
- how and when the site was tested, and when the statement was last reviewed
A statement should be reviewed regularly, at least once a year, and whenever the website changes significantly.
How we handle it for you
Every Parish Council Pigeon website launches with an accessibility statement written for that site, based on the government model and on how we actually tested it. We keep it up to date when the standard or the site changes. Read more about how we build and test for accessibility, and our guide to understanding WCAG 2.2 for the standard itself. You may also want security and data protection, which covers where your data is held and how it is backed up.
Questions about accessibility statements
Does a parish council need an accessibility statement?
Yes. Parish and town council websites are covered by the Public Sector Bodies Accessibility Regulations 2018, which require an accessibility statement in the government’s model format.
Which accessibility standard applies to council websites?
The regulations require the WCAG AA standard. Government monitoring now tests against WCAG 2.2 AA, and that is the version we build every site to.
Can a council say its website is partially compliant?
Yes, if that is true. A partially compliant statement that lists the known issues and the plan to fix them is exactly what the regulations expect, and it is far better than an inaccurate claim of full compliance.
How often should the accessibility statement be reviewed?
At least once a year, and whenever the website changes significantly. We review the statement for you whenever the standard or your site changes.
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