Accessibility statement for GOV.WALES
This accessibility statement applies to the Welsh Government’s information on GOV.WALES.
Each service has its own accessibility page. It outlines how accessible the service is, how to report problems and how to request information in an alternative format. You can access these pages from the footer inside the individual service’s web pages.
Using this website
This website is run by the Welsh Government. We want as many people as possible to be able to use this website. For example, that means you should be able to:
- change colours, contrast levels and fonts
- zoom in up to 300% without the text spilling off the screen
- navigate most of the website using just a keyboard
- navigate most of the website using speech recognition software
- use most of the website using a screen reader (including the most recent versions of JAWS, NVDA and VoiceOver)
We’ve also made the website text as simple as possible to understand.
AbilityNet has advice on making your device easier to use if you have a disability.
How accessible this website is
We know some parts of this website are not fully accessible:
- some pages and document attachments are not clearly written
- some tables do not have row headers
- some heading elements are not consistent
- some page titles are not unique
- some form labels are not unique
- some images do not have good alternative text
- some link text does not describe the purpose of the link
- many documents are in PDF format and are not accessible
Feedback and contact information
If you need information on this website in a different format like accessible PDF, large print, easy read, audio recording or braille:
- email: customerhelp@gov.wales
- phone (UK): 0300 0604400
- phone (International): (+44) 1443 845500
In order to help us better meet your needs, please tell us the alternative format you would like to receive, and if you use any assistive technology please let us know.
We’ll consider your request and get back to you in 15 working days.
If you cannot find us from the address on our contact us page, please call or email us for directions.
Reporting accessibility issues with this website
We’re always looking to improve the accessibility of this website. If you find any problems that are not listed on this page or think we’re not meeting the requirements of the accessibility regulations, contact: customerhelp@gov.wales
Enforcement procedure
The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) is responsible for enforcing the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018 (the ‘accessibility regulations’). If you’re not happy with how we respond to your complaint, please contact the Equality Advisory and Support Service (EASS).
Contacting us by phone or visiting us in person
We provide a text relay service for people who are Deaf, deaf, hearing impaired or have a speech impediment.
Our offices have audio induction loops, or if you contact us before your visit we can arrange a British Sign Language (BSL) interpreter.
Find out how to contact us.
Technical information about this website’s accessibility
The Welsh Government is committed to making its website accessible, in accordance with the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018.
Compliance status
This website is partially compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines version 2.1 AA standard, due to the non-compliances listed below.
Non-accessible content
The content that is not accessible is outlined below with details of:
- where it fails the success criteria
- planned dates for when issues will be fixed
Some tables in content do not have table row headers when needed. This fails WCAG 2.1 A 1.3.1 success criterion (Info and Relationships). We plan to fix by September 2020.
Headings on some pages are not in a logical nested order. This fails WCAG 2.1 1.3.1 A success criterion (Info and Relationships). We plan to identify and fix these by September 2020.
Some page titles are not unique. They are not accurately describing the topic or purpose of the page. This fails WCAG 2.4.2 A success criterion (Page Titled). We plan to fix this by September 2020.
Link text combined with programmatically determined link context does not identifies the purpose of the link. This fails WCAG 2.1 2.4.4 A success criterion (Link Purpose (In Context)). We plan to fix this by September 2020.
Images on pages do not always have suitable alternative text. Some images are missing alternative text and some have incomplete text. This fails WCAG 2.1 1.1.1 A success criterion (Non-text Content). We plan to identify and fix these by September 2020.
Duplicate id attribute values are contained wthin some pages. This fails WCAG 4.1.1 A success criterion (Parsing). We plan to identify and fix these by September 2020.
Pages contain Iframe elements that do not contain a title attribute that identifies the frame. This fails 2.4.1 A success criterion (Bypass Blocks). We plan to identify and fix these by September 2020.
PDFs and other documents
New documents we publish to access our services should be fully accessible.
However, we know that some of our older documents (published before 23 September 2018) are not accessible. For example, some of them:
- are not marked up in a way that allows screen reader users to understand them
- are not tagged up properly, for example they do not contain proper headings
- are not written in plain English
Some of these are historic documents and are not essential to providing our services. These types of documents are exempt from the regulations. We do not currently have any plans to make them accessible.
If you need to access information in one of these document types, please contact us and ask for an alternative format.
Preparation of this accessibility statement
This statement was prepared on 14 July 2020. It was last reviewed on 15 December 2020.
This website was last tested on 14 November 2019. The test was carried out by Connect Internet Solutions Ltd.
We tested a combination of core templates, commonly used templates and complex templates.
We tested:
- our main website platform, available at https://gov.wales
- our campaign microsites, available at:
- https://gov.wales/parenting-give-it-time
- https://gov.wales/st-david-awards
GOV.WALES services
Each service has its own accessibility page, with details of how accessible the service is, how to report problems and how to request information in an alternative format. You can access these pages from the footer inside the individual service’s web pages.
This statement was prepared on 14 July 2020. It was last updated on 15 December 2020.