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Accessibility statement for the Acas website

This accessibility statement applies to acas.org.uk and tell.acas.org.uk.

This website is run by Acas. 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, line and fonts
  • zoom in up to 500% 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
  • listen to 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 acas.org.uk are not fully accessible, for example:

  • as part of our design and layout that adapts to the screen it’s being used on, there are 2 search boxes and more than one heading level 1 (H1), which are confusing for screen-reader users
  • some documents are in accessible PDF format instead of HTML

We know some parts of tell.acas.org.uk are not fully accessible, for example:

  • the ‘find address’ button cannot be accessed if you are only using a keyboard

If you cannot access parts of this website

If you need information on this website in a different format, like large print, easy read, audio recording, braille or accessible PDF, email digital@acas.org.uk. We’ll consider your request and get back to you in 10 working days.

Reporting accessibility problems 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 you think we’re not meeting accessibility requirements, email digital@acas.org.uk.

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, contact the Equality Advisory and Support Service (EASS).

Contact Acas

Find out how to contact us.

By phone

We provide a relay service for people who are D/deaf, hearing impaired or have a speech impediment. See how to contact us by Relay UK.

If you find it difficult to use the phone or the relay service

Let us know how we can help. Email us at accessibleservices@acas.org.uk.

If you speak another language

If you (or someone you’re calling on behalf of) speak another language, call the Acas helpline to tell us. We’ll provide an interpreter.

Technical information about this website’s accessibility

Acas 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 listed below is non-accessible for the following reasons.

Non-compliance with the accessibility regulations

There is more than one heading level 1 (H1) on acas.org.uk. This is confusing for screen-reader users and does not meet WCAG 2.1 success criterion 2.4.6 (headings and labels).

There are 2 search boxes in the template on acas.org.uk as part of our design and layout that adapts to the screen it’s being used on. This means there’s a duplicate label. This also does not meet WCAG 2.1 success criterion 2.4.6 (headings and labels).

When users navigate to the cookie message on acas.org.uk using the ‘tab’ key on a keyboard, they cannot dismiss the message. This does not meet WCAG 2.1 success criterion 2.1.1 (keyboard).

When users navigate the tell.acas.org.uk notification form using the ‘tab’ key on a keyboard, the ‘find address’ button is skipped. This does not meet WCAG 2.1 success criterion 2.1.1 (keyboard).

One of our PDFs does not identify data tables correctly so screen reader users may not be able to follow the structure of the document. This may affect their ability to access and understand the information. This does not meet WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.3.1 (info and relationships).

We plan to fix these issues by December 2021.

Disproportionate burden 

We’ve identified Codes of Practice 2 and 3 as a disproportionate burden.

We’ve published these Codes of Practice in HTML but they are not fully accessible because they use large amounts of bold to convey meaning. 

We would need parliamentary approval to make these Codes of Practice fully accessible. We do not believe that the cost, time and resource to fix these issues is justified.

PDFs and other documents

We have published some accessible PDFs on this website which we will convert to HTML by December 2021.

We occasionally link to PDFs on other websites, including other Acas websites.

All other documents published on this website are in open formats.

How we tested this website

Our most recent audits were:

  • acas.org.uk in November 2019
  • tell.acas.org.uk in May 2019

The tests were carried out by the Digital Accessibility Centre.

We audited:

  • all templates on our main website platform, available at acas.org.uk
  • the forms and guidance pages for the ‘Find a solution to an employment dispute’ service on tell.acas.org.uk

If you would like a copy of our accessibility audit reports, email digital@acas.org.uk.

What we’re doing to improve accessibility

All new templates on our website will be checked using a variety of automated and manual tests. This includes testing with users who have physical and cognitive impairments.

We’ll audit acas.org.uk again in the financial year 2020 to 2021. We’ll continue to audit both acas.org.uk and tell.acas.org.uk every year.

This statement was prepared on 13 December 2019. It was last updated on 10 February 2021.