‘The Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No.2) Accessibility Regulations 2018’.
You will already know that the Government introduced new guidelines in September 2018 to regulate public sector websites and mobile apps to meet accessibility standards.
All public sector websites will now have to be accessible to all users, especially those with disabilities such as impaired vision, cognitive impairments or learning disabilities, motor difficulties or deafness or impaired hearing.
Service providers should already be ahead of the game by following the technical standards issued in the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0 and adhering to the four basic accessibility principles: perceivable, operable, understandable and robust.
They should also understand the scale and impact of accessibility and how to develop and implement basic through to advanced accessibility techniques.
New public sector websites will need to comply by 22 September 2019 (live after 22 September 2018), while all other public sector websites have a year’s grace – 22 September 2020 and mobile applications 22 June 2021.*
Don’t forget that you are legally responsible for your website/app meeting these standards, even if this is outsourced to a website supplier.
*Certain organisations and types of content may be exempt.
For detailed guidelines, visit GOV.UK
