Accessibility

This accessibility statement applies to consult.gov.scot.

This website is run by the Scottish Government on software designed and controlled by Delib.

It is designed to be used by as many people as possible. You should be able to:

use your web browser to change colours, contrast levels and fonts
zoom in up to 200% without loss of information
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)
access the website using a mobile or tablet.

AbilityNet has advice on making your device easier to use if you have a disability.

How accessible this website is

Content that has been added that is not fully accessible may be listed on this page as a non-compliance, or details may be given alongside the inaccessible content.

Delib is committed to making the software accessible.

Delib test the software against the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines V2.2 AA standard. Improvements to the software are released regularly. Any changes made to the software as a part of that process are tested internally in advance of release for compliance with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines V2.2 level AA.

Feedback and contact information

We’re always looking to improve the accessibility of this website.

If you find any problems not listed on this page or think we’re not meeting accessibility requirements, contact: digitalengagement@gov.scot with details of the problem you have encountered.

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).

Technical information about this website’s accessibility

The Scottish Government and Delib are 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 2.2 AA standard, due to the non-compliances listed below.

Non-compliances with the accessibility regulations

1.1.1 Non-text alternatives 1.1.1 Non-text alternatives

The canvas element on maps should have an aria-label.

For published responses, form fields need an aria placeholder when no answer is given.

1.3.1: Info and Relationships 1.3.1: Info and Relationships

The PDF that is supplied to a respondent on completing an activity does not follow techniques laid out in WCAG, e.g. there are no heading tags and no document title.

There is an oddity dependent on assistive technology type which means matrix questions can be announced confusingly in certain situations.

If publishing responses is enabled, there are a couple of non-conformities: the pagination navigation on published responses could be improved; ranking questions shown on a published response are not marked up as lists, which may make it difficult for some users to know how many items there were to rank; and some of the heading levels on a published responses are not at the most appropriate level.

1.3.2: Meaningful Sequence 1.3.2: Meaningful Sequence

When an error occurs on an activity, the focus can sometimes be inconsistent for assistive technology.

1.4.11: Non-text Contrast 1.4.11: Non-text Contrast

Progress indicator fails contrast minimum. The progress indicator present on survey pages has a low colour contrast ratio against the background of the page (1.6:1 ratio).

Some input elements on survey pages, the search box on the published responses page (only if enabled), and on the help/feedback page do not have sufficient contrast when they are focused.

1.4.12: Text Spacing 1.4.12: Text Spacing

Text can be obscured when zoomed on the published responses page. (This only applies to activities which have both related files and related links).

Visible label does not match screen-reader only label.

2.5.3 Label in Name 2.5.3 Label in Name

Visible label does not match screen-reader only label. The use of screen-reader only text can be found within the Menu button that appears at mobile viewports. Visually, the button reads: ‘Menu’. However, there is hidden text that is accessible to screen-readers so the item will be read as: ‘Toggle navigation Menu’.

This poses a problem for voice control users who only see ‘Menu’. Testing using Voice Control on an iOS device, saying: ‘Tap menu’ does not open the menu as this is not the element’s name. As such, a voice over user would be unable to easily open the menu without using the grid functionality.

4.1.2 Name, Role, Value 4.1.2 Name, Role, Value

Various links on the ‘find activities’ page and the published responses page sorting options (if enabled) should instead be buttons.

PDFs and other documents

Some document formats such as PDF, MS Word and Excel may not be fully accessible. We plan to either fix these or replace them with accessible HTML pages.

Disproportionate burden

We are not claiming that any of our accessibility issues are disproportionate to fix.

Content that’s not within the scope of the accessibility regulations

PDFs and office file formats

The accessibility regulations do not require us to fix PDFs or other documents published before 23 September 2018 if they are not essential to providing our services.

What we’re doing to improve accessibility

Delib perform regular accessibility audits and work on accessibility throughout the year, releasing regular updates to the product. Details of audits and other tests are listed below.

Preparation of this accessibility statement

This statement was last reviewed on 29 February 2024.

Accessibility tests by the Government Digital Service and Cabinet Office to check against WCAG 2.1 AA success criteria were carried out on 23 August 2023.

The tools used to carry out this test were:

Type	Software used
Operating system	Windows 11 Pro and iOS 16.3 on iPhone 11
Browser	Chrome on PC (viewport of 1280x1024), Safari on iPhone
Assistive technology	NVDA screen reader
Accessibility testing software	Axe, WAVE, HTML Validator, Colour Contrast Analyser, Adobe Acrobat Pro

Delib’s most recent external accessibility audit of Citizen Space, conducted by TetraLogical, took place in September 2022.

They will have another audit completed in early 2024 following the release of WCAG 2.2. They began preparing for WCAG 2.2 in late 2022 and are now testing releases against WCAG 2.2 Level AA. Delib held off on an external audit in 2023 to ensure that their next audit is carried out against the most up to date criteria. Nonconformities list will be updated to WCAG 2.2 following the next external audit.