Commissioning documents

Since 2018 it has been a legal requirement for all government websites to be accessible.

This applies to any websites, portals or documents we are responsible for.

It is important when commissioning new web content including documents that they meet the latest accessibility regulations.

To help you inform potential suppliers of this requirement before commissioning work we have provided three paragraphs below that can be shared with them:

As a public sector body, Arun District Council has a legal obligation to ensure any document we publish online meet the latest accessibility regulations (currently WCAG 2.2 AA minimum). This includes documents that have been commissioned by us. The document you have been asked to produce must therefore meet the same regulations.

The regulations are called ‘The Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018’ and further information on the regulation can be found here Understanding accessibility requirements for public sector bodies - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).

You can also find useful guidance on creating accessible documents from Microsoft and Adobe here Make your Word documents accessible to people with disabilities (microsoft.com) and Create and verify PDF accessibility, Acrobat Pro (adobe.com).

Please email webmaster@arun.gov.uk if you have any queries or need assistance.