Accessibility statement: what to publish on your school website
Your accessibility statement says how accessible your website is, which parts aren't and how to ask for another format, following the government's model statement.
Check this on my websiteWho it applies to
- Published on
- School and trust websites
- School type
- Academies and maintained schools
- School stage
- All stages, from early years to sixth form
- Does not apply to
- No school types are excluded
When it's due
Keep it up to date
There's no fixed date. Update it whenever something changes.
What's needed
Publish an accessibility statement in the model format on its own page on your website, linked from the footer of every page, saying which parts aren't accessible, how to give feedback and when you last reviewed it.
What it must contain
9 parts- Provides an accessibility statement in line with the model accessibility statementMust: Required by law, statutory guidance or the academy's funding agreement.
- Explains which parts of the website are not accessible and whyMust: Required by law, statutory guidance or the academy's funding agreement.
- Dates when the accessibility statement was last reviewedMust: Required by law, statutory guidance or the academy's funding agreement.
- Links to the enforcement procedure for accessibility complaintsMust: Required by law, statutory guidance or the academy's funding agreement.
- Links to a contact form for accessibility feedbackMust: Required by law, statutory guidance or the academy's funding agreement.
- States that the site meets WCAG 2.2 AAShould: Recommended in official guidance, such as the DfE's. Not a legal requirement in itself.
- Describes any accessible alternative formats providedMust: Required by law, statutory guidance or the academy's funding agreement.
- Explains which accessibility requirements were not met, when fixing them was a disproportionate burdenMust: Required by law, statutory guidance or the academy's funding agreement.
- Explains, through the contact form, how to ask for details of content excluded from the accessibility requirementsMust: Required by law, statutory guidance or the academy's funding agreement.
What the official sources say
Set out in 2 official sources:
Understanding accessibility requirements for public sector bodies
The accessibility regulations came into force for public sector bodies on 23 September 2018. They say you must make your website or mobile app more accessible by making it ‘perceivable, operable, understandable and robust’. You need to include and update an accessibility statement on your website.
Must: Required by law, statutory guidance or the academy's funding agreement.§ GDS guidance, section 'Meeting accessibility requirements'
Public sector bodies must publish an accessibility statement and review it regularly.
Must: Required by law, statutory guidance or the academy's funding agreement.§ GDS guidance, section 'How the accessibility regulations will be monitored and enforced'
Show 4 more from this source
The accessibility regulations apply for public sector mobile apps. The apps must be accessible and publish an accessibility statement.
Must: Required by law, statutory guidance or the academy's funding agreement.§ GDS guidance, section 'Mobile apps'
Your website or mobile app will meet the legal requirements if you: – meet the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2 AA accessibility standard – although there may be valid legal reasons for not meeting accessibility standards – publish an accessibility statement that explains how accessible your website or mobile app is
Expected: Inspectors expect to see it, though it isn't a legal requirement.§ GDS guidance, section 'Meeting accessibility requirements' (bullet list)
Partially exempt organisations would need to publish an accessibility statement on their website or mobile app.
Expected: Inspectors expect to see it, though it isn't a legal requirement.§ GDS guidance, section 'When you may be exempt from accessibility regulations'
If you decide that fixing something would be a disproportionate burden, you’ll need to say so in the accessibility statement you publish on your website or mobile app.
Expected: Inspectors expect to see it, though it isn't a legal requirement.§ GDS guidance, section 'When complying with accessibility regulations might be a disproportionate burden'
Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018 (SI 2018/952)
1 A public sector body must provide an accessibility statement in accordance with the model accessibility statement, and keep that statement under regular review.
Must: Required by law, statutory guidance or the academy's funding agreement.§ SI 2018/952 reg 8(1) (definitions of 'accessibility statement' and 'model accessibility statement' in reg 3)
4 If, following the assessment, a public sector body determines that compliance with the accessibility requirement would impose a disproportionate burden, it must— a explain in its accessibility statement the parts of the accessibility requirement that could not be complied with; and b where appropriate, provide accessible alternatives to documents held by that public sector body that are not available on their website or mobile application.
Must: Required by law, statutory guidance or the academy's funding agreement.§ SI 2018/952 reg 7(4)
Show 3 more from this source
2 For a website, the accessibility statement must be— a provided in an accessible format; and b published on the website of the public sector body.
Must: Required by law, statutory guidance or the academy's funding agreement.§ SI 2018/952 reg 8(2)
3 For a mobile application, the accessibility statement must be— a provided in an accessible format; and b available on the website of the public sector body or alongside other information available when downloading the mobile application.
Must: Required by law, statutory guidance or the academy's funding agreement.§ SI 2018/952 reg 8(3)
4 The accessibility statement must include— a an explanation of those parts of the content that are not accessible and the reasons why; b where appropriate, a description of any accessible alternatives provided; c a description of, and a link to, a contact form which enables a person to— i notify the public sector body of any failure of its website or mobile application to comply with the accessibility requirement; and ii request details of the information excluded under regulation 4(2) and regulation 7(4); and d a link to the enforcement procedure set out in Part 5 of these Regulations to which recourse may be had in the event of an unsatisfactory response to the notification or the request.
Must: Required by law, statutory guidance or the academy's funding agreement.§ SI 2018/952 reg 8(4)(a)-(d)
Questions schools ask
Do schools need an accessibility statement on their website?
Academies and maintained schools must.
What does a school accessibility statement need to include?
Provides an accessibility statement in line with the model accessibility statement; Explains which parts of the website are not accessible and why; Dates when the accessibility statement was last reviewed; Links to the enforcement procedure for accessibility complaints; Links to a contact form for accessibility feedback; States that the site meets WCAG 2.2 AA; and 3 more parts listed above.
How often do we need to update our accessibility statement?
Keep it up to date. There's no fixed date. Update it whenever something changes.
Where does the requirement for the accessibility statement come from?
It is set out in Understanding accessibility requirements for public sector bodies and Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018 (SI 2018/952).
Recent changes to the official guidance
Updates to the official sources that affect this requirement, newest first.
5 October 2023 · Understanding accessibility requirements for public sector bodies
Updated guidance as result of the new success criteria in WCAG 2.2.
18 February 2020 · Understanding accessibility requirements for public sector bodies
We removed dates which have already passed. We updated the section on exemptions to make things clear about partial exemption for primary and secondary schools and nurseries. More detail on intranets and extranets.
We last checked these sources on 21 September 2026.
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Official sources last checked 21 September 2026 · register version 1.0.4