Data catalogue/My Account area

This accessibility statement applies to the UK Data Service data catalogue and My Account websites available at https://beta.ukdataservice.ac.uk/.

This website is run by the UK Data Service. 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 using browser or device settings
  • zoom in up to 400% without the text spilling off the screen
  • navigate most of the website using just a keyboard or speech recognition software
  • listen to most of the website using a screen reader (including the most recent versions of JAWS, NVDA and VoiceOver).

We’ve also made the website text as simple as possible to understand.

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

How accessible this website is

We know some parts of this website aren’t fully accessible:

  • Some of our older PDF and Word documents aren’t fully accessible to screen reader software.
  • Some edge cases in the data catalogue use specific tags for presentation effects.
  • Some edge cases in the data catalogue insert content using CSS styling.
  • Some CSS styling in the data catalogue uses absolute rather than relative units.

Feedback and contact information

If you find any problems not listed on this page or think we’re not meeting accessibility requirements, plus if you need information on this website in a different format like accessible PDF, large print, easy read, audio recording or braille versions, please contact:

We’ll consider your request and get back to you within seven working days.

Reporting accessibility problems with this website

This website has recently undergone another major update with the aim of rectifying a number of accessibility issues. We will continue to review older documents that currently have accessibility issues with the intention of moving these to a more accessible format. Staff who provide content for the website have been made aware of accessibility requirements and have been trained to enable them to address these when adding new content and documents to the website.

We’re always looking to improve the accessibility of this website. If you find any problems that aren’t listed on this page or think we’re not meeting accessibility requirements, contact our Marketing and Communications Manager on 01206 872001 or contact our communications team by email.

Contacting us by phone or visiting us in person

If you contact us before your visit we can arrange liaison with local agencies to provide sign language interpreters or lip speakers through Essex University’s Disability Service, subject to cost and availability. We hope to provide audio induction loops in the future, once we have the required technology to host this service.

Find out how to 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).

Technical information about this website’s accessibility

The UK Data Service is committed to making its website accessible, in accordance with the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018.

Compliance status

The website has been tested against the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines – WCAG 2.2 AA standard.

This website is partially compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines version 2.2 AA standard, due to ‘the non-compliances’, listed below.

Non-accessible content

The content listed below is non-accessible for the following reasons.

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

PDFs and other documents

Some of our older PDFs and Word documents don’t meet accessibility standards – for example, they may not be structured so they’re accessible to a screen reader. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 4.1.2 (name, role value).

The accessibility regulations do not require that we fix PDFs or other documents published before 23 September 2018 if they’re not essential to providing our services. However, we commissioned a design agency to create accessible templates for our documents in 2021 and we have already moved a number of our older PDF documents into these templates. We will move more of our older documents into accessible templates, subject to capacity, and will prioritise content that is used more frequently (identified via web analytics or user feedback).

Staff who create documents for publishing on the website have been provided with guidance and advice on how to make their documents more accessible.

We will aim to make any new PDFs or Word documents published on the website meet accessibility standards.

Non-compliance with the accessibility regulations

  • Some images do not have a text alternative, so people using a screen reader cannot access the information. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 1.1.1 (non-text content). We plan to review these images on the site and add alternative text for all images in 2025.
  • Some pages currently show very low contrast between text and background colours, so people with low vision may have difficulty reading the text. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 1.4.3 (contrast minimum). We will address these contrast issues when we conduct any further web development.
  • Some edge cases in the data catalogue use specific tags for presentation effects when integrating 3rd party vendor software packages. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 1.3.1 (info and relationships).
  • Some edge cases in the data catalogue insert content using CSS styling. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 1.3.1 (info and relationships).
  • Some CSS styling in the data catalogue uses absolute rather than relative units. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 1.4.4 (resize text).

Disproportionate burden

Some accessibility issues have been identified in the data catalogue application. We believe that modifying source code for this application would create a disproportionate burden considering its replacement is currently in active development. These issues will be addressed in the new application.

Some minor issues have been identified with HTML tag nesting. Some content is managed through the Umbraco Content Management System. This application uses a WYSIWYG HTML Editor to allow modifying page content. This editor injects HTML markup which can sometimes produce invalid nested tags under specific edge cases. We have no control over this markup and it would not be feasible to modify Umbraco source code.

Some minor CSS issues have been identified with 3rd party vendor software packages. We have no control over this styling and it would not be feasible to make changes to externally managed source code. We have taken appropriate action where possible to mitigate rendering issues.

Some videos do not contain captions that have been checked for accuracy. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 1.2.2 Captions (Prerecorded). We provide captions for all pre-recorded videos published after 23 September 2020 using automated software and our staff follow guidance that helps improve the accuracy of captions created in this manner.

We believe that to edit and check all captions for accuracy would create a disproportionate burden considering the current resources of the UK Data Service and the volume of pre-recorded audio and video content. To edit all captions for accuracy at the present time would require that we removed a large volume of our videos from our website and third-party platforms, which we believe would be more detrimental to our users. We have set out a plan to make our pre-recorded audio and videos more accessible and in the interim, we will edit and check captions for accuracy for pre-recorded audio and video content that falls within the definition of ‘core’ or ‘key’ content (as defined by the UK Data Service).

We will also edit captions for accuracy for any specific audio or video recording when requested to do so by a user who has accessibility needs.

How we tested this website

This website was last tested on 18 March 2025 against the WCAG 2.2 AA standard. The test was carried out by staff in the Communications team and Web developers, using a combination of Total Validator, WAVE accessibility tool and manual checks.

What we’re doing to improve accessibility

We will be running regular accessibility checks and ensure that new content added to the website meets accessibility requirements.

Preparation of this accessibility statement

This statement was prepared on 8 August 2021. It was last reviewed on 22 August 2025.

This website was last tested on 18 March 2025 against the WCAG 2.2 AA standard. The test was carried out by UK Data Service staff.

Last updated 22 August 2025