Accessibility
The census website is run by the Office for National Statistics (ONS). We want as many people as possible to be able to use this website. For example, that means you should be able to:
- change colours, contrast levels and fonts
- zoom in up to 300% without the text spilling off the screen
- 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
We use simple language as much as possible.
AbilityNet has advice on making your device easier to use if you have a disability or impairment.
How accessible is this website?
We know that the following parts of this website are not fully accessible:
- you cannot modify the line height or spacing of text
- some of the bulleted lists may not be fully accessible to screen readers
Feedback and contact information
If you need information on this website in a different format, for example, accessible PDF, large print, easy read, audio recording or braille, please contact us.
Reporting accessibility problems
We’re always looking to improve the accessibility of this website. If you find any problems that are not listed on this page, or think we are not meeting accessibility requirements, please contact us.
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) if you live in England or Wales
- Equality Commission for Northern Ireland (ECNI) if you live in Northern Ireland
Technical information about this website’s accessibility
The ONS is committed to making this 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 (WCAG) 2.1 AA standard, due to the non-compliances listed.
Non-accessible content
The content listed is non-accessible for the following reasons.
Non-compliance with the accessibility regulations
Some headings do not follow a logical hierarchical structure. This fails on WCAG AAA 2.1 success criterion 2.4.10.
How we tested this website
This website was last tested on 3 September 2019. Digital Accessibility Centre (DAC) carried out the test.
We tested:
- browsing the website homepage
- successfully navigating to the questionnaire from the website homepage
- browsing help content in the website
- successfully navigating to the questionnaire using the banner on another page on the website
- navigating to, and launching, Web chat from the contact page
- downloading resources
You can read the accessibility test report from 3 September 2019:
We have also tested for accessibility using Google Lighthouse to audit the website.
What we’re doing to improve accessibility
Before the census period begins in March 2021, we’ll carry out the following accessibility checks, including:
- further DAC testing
- some automated tests, such as WAVE
- manual checking of the website
We’ll act on the results of these tests and checks to increase our level of compliance with the accessibility regulations. We’ll then update this statement.
Preparation of this accessibility statement
This statement was prepared on 17 September 2019. It was last updated on 23 September 2020.