Accessible communications learning and resources
Create accessible communications using these learning and resources.
- For everyone, including policymakers
- For content creators
- For website owners
- For GOV.UK editors and content designers
For everyone, incuding policy makers
Start with your text and structure
- For readability, to help you make your writing bold and clear, use this free app to highlight lengthy, complex sentences and common errors: Hemingway App
- Get your document’s readability and level statistics (Microsoft)
Use the accessibility checker
To help ensure that your Office files are accessible, use the Accessibility Checker, a free tool available in Word, Excel, Outlook, OneNote, and PowerPoint:
Watch our on-demand training in the GCS Academy
- Digital accessibility: best practice essentials (12 minutes)
- Digital accessibility for government communicators, with GDS (44 minutes)
- Accessibility Culture eats WCAG compliance for breakfast GDS/BBC webinar (58 minutes)
- Inclusive design 101 with Christina Mallon (GCS members access) (43 minutes)
- CS Live 2021 replay: “Think inclusion: communicating with all” (GCS members access) (45 minutes)
- GDS Global Accessibility Awareness Day video series 7 videos
Read
- about accessibility with our GCS diversity and inclusion blog posts
- the Accessibility in government blog
- a series of interviews with people with access needs: Accessibility and me
Guidelines and legal requirements
- Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (known as WCAG 2.1): Understanding WCAG 2.1
- Read: Accessible communications: what is our duty (GCS members only). Ask the development adviser in your department for the GCS password or contact us for their details.
For content creators
Tools and resources
- Accessibility guidance by job role from the Department for Work and Pensions: DWP Accessibility Manual
- Use the bite-size guidance about accessibility: SCULPT for accessibility from Worcestershire County Council
- Do the Edx free training, self-paced: W3C – Introduction to web accessibility
Check the colour and contrast
- Colour contrast checker to achieve an AA or AAA colour rating (the minimum ratio is 4.5:1)
- WebAIM contrast checker
For website owners
- Doing a basic accessibility check if you cannot do a detailed one
- How set up a new government campaign online
- Creating accessibility statements and how to conduct accessibility checks, watch GDS Global Accessibility Awareness Day video series