Your website accessibility statement

An accessibility statement is one of the most important compliance documents on your website. It tells disabled visitors what they can expect, explains known accessibility barriers, gives people a way to report problems and shows that your organisation is taking digital inclusion seriously. If this page is missing, vague, outdated or clearly generated by a tool, it becomes an immediate red flag. It can make your organisation look careless before anyone has even tested the rest of your website.

At Access by Design, we believe a good statement should begin with a simple human principle. If people cannot use parts of your website, start by saying sorry. That may sound obvious, but it is often missing. A statement should not hide behind jargon or pretend everything is fine. It should acknowledge the barriers, explain what is being done and give people confidence that your organisation is working towards a better experience.

This is not just a page to satisfy a template. It is a legal document, a public commitment and a practical route for disabled users to ask for help. Done properly, it can protect your organisation while remediation is underway. Done badly, it can become your greatest weakness.

Why An Accessibility Statement Matters

An accessibility statement matters because it is often the first thing someone will look for when they want to understand whether your organisation takes accessibility seriously. Disabled users, procurement teams, regulators, legal advisers and potential complainants may all check it before they look deeper.

If there is no statement, the message is clear. Your organisation has either not considered accessibility, or has not made its position public. That does not mean every missing statement will automatically result in action, but it does make you low hanging fruit. It gives people an easy starting point if they want to challenge your website.

A weak statement can be just as dangerous. Some organisations publish a short paragraph saying they are committed to accessibility, with no evidence, no known issues, no testing date, no contact route and no realistic plan. That does not reassure anyone. It often makes the situation worse, because it suggests the organisation does not understand what is required.

A proper statement should be honest, specific and grounded in evidence. It should explain what has been tested, what does not yet work, what you are doing about it and how people can contact you if they need support. It should also be reviewed and updated as your website changes.

The phrase accessibility statement uk is often searched by organisations trying to understand what applies in Britain. For UK public sector bodies, there are clear formal requirements. For private sector organisations, the position is different, but the risk is still real. The Equality Act 2010 requires reasonable adjustments, and a clear statement helps show that your organisation is aware of its responsibilities and has a plan.

Your Statement And Legal Risk

An accessibility statement does not make an inaccessible website compliant by magic. It is not a shield that protects you from every complaint. It is evidence. It shows what you know, what you have checked, what barriers remain and what you intend to do next.

That evidence matters. Under UK public sector rules, organisations must meet accessibility standards and publish a statement explaining how accessible their website or app is. GOV.UK also provides model wording, which is why many people search for accessibility statement gov.uk when trying to understand the expected format.

Private organisations are increasingly under pressure too. The European Accessibility Act affects many products and services offered to consumers in the EU. The Americans with Disabilities Act is also relevant to many US organisations, particularly businesses open to the public and state or local government services. Similar laws and expectations exist across the world.

The phrase accessibility statement legal requirement is therefore more complicated than it first appears. The exact legal duty depends on your sector, location, audience and services. That is why the statement must not be treated as a generic copy and paste exercise. It needs to reflect your real website, your real testing and your real compliance position.

The most important point is simple. If your website has barriers, your statement needs to explain them properly. It should not exaggerate. It should not minimise. It should not claim compliance that has not been proven. A statement that says your website is fully accessible when it clearly is not can create serious reputational and legal risk.

This is why we describe the statement as both protection and exposure. If it is done properly, it helps show that your organisation is acting responsibly. If it is done badly, it gives people evidence that you do not understand your obligations.

A Statement That Must Stack Up

An effective accessibility statement needs to be clear enough for ordinary users and precise enough to support compliance. That balance is not easy. It must be human, but it must also stack up technically.

The accessibility statement requirements usually include several important elements. The statement should explain which website or service it applies to, how accessible the site is, which parts are not accessible, what users can do if they need information in another format, how to report problems and when the statement was prepared or reviewed.

For public sector bodies, the GOV.UK model statement includes specific sections covering compliance status, non accessible content, preparation of the statement, feedback and contact information and enforcement. That structure is useful because it forces organisations to be specific rather than vague.

A good statement should explain known problems in the correct way. It may need to describe issues with keyboard navigation, headings, forms, colour contrast, PDFs, video captions, mobile behaviour, third party content or documents. It should also explain whether problems are being fixed, whether there is a plan and whether any content is currently outside scope.

This is where many organisations get into trouble. They either say too little, or they say the wrong thing. They make broad claims without evidence. They use technical language incorrectly. They copy wording from another website. They publish a statement that does not match the actual condition of the site.

A statement should never be written in isolation. It needs to be based on a proper accessibility audit. Without testing, you do not know what barriers exist. Without that knowledge, you cannot write an honest statement. You can only guess, and guessing is not compliance.

At Access by Design, we start with evidence. We test the website, identify the barriers, assess the impact and then create a statement that reflects the real position. That means the document is not just tidy. It is defensible.

Accessibility Statement Generators Are Dangerous

An accessibility statement template can be useful as a starting structure, but it cannot replace professional judgement. A template does not know your website. It does not know your forms, documents, navigation, code, content, third party systems or user journeys. It does not know whether disabled people can actually use your site.

Accessibility statement generators are even more risky. Some ask a few basic questions and then produce a polished looking document. The problem is that polished wording is not the same as accuracy. A generated statement may look official while saying almost nothing useful. In the worst cases, it can produce garbage that exposes your organisation rather than protecting it.

This is especially dangerous when the generator asks whether your site is compliant and the person completing the form does not know the answer. If they choose the wrong option, the statement may claim a level of accessibility that has never been tested. That is not a small admin mistake. It is a public compliance claim.

A web accessibility statement must be based on facts. It should reflect the website as it actually is, not as you hope it is. If a generator creates wording without an audit, without human testing and without a proper understanding of accessibility law, it cannot give you reliable protection.

This is why we are blunt about it. Do not rely on a generator for a serious compliance document. It may save time today and create risk tomorrow. The better route is to audit first, write the statement properly and keep it updated as fixes are made.

Templates can still have a role. The official GOV.UK model is helpful because it shows the expected structure for public sector statements. The problem begins when organisations treat any accessibility statement template as a finished answer. The structure may be borrowed. The content must be yours.

Accessibility Statement After An Audit

The correct order is simple. Audit the website first. Write the statement second. Improve the website third. Update the statement as progress is made.

An audit gives you the evidence needed to explain your position. It identifies the barriers, shows which users are affected and helps prioritise fixes. It also helps avoid vague statements that say accessibility is important without explaining what is actually happening.

Our accessibility audit process combines technical review with real user testing by disabled people. That matters because automated tools can only find part of the problem. Many serious barriers only appear when someone uses the website with assistive technology or tries to complete a real task.

Once the audit is complete, the statement can be written properly. It can explain the known issues, the practical impact, the planned fixes and the contact process. It can also explain whether some content is outside the immediate remediation plan and why.

This does not mean every website must be fixed overnight. Many organisations discover a large number of issues, especially if the site has never been properly tested before. A realistic statement can help show that you understand the problems and are working through them in a structured way.

That is one of the strongest reasons to act early. If you wait until a complaint arrives, the statement may look reactive. If you publish a clear, honest statement after proper testing, you show that the work has already begun.

For organisations affected by the European Accessibility Act, the Equality Act, public sector regulations, the Americans with Disabilities Act or similar requirements, this matters. Regulators and complainants are not only interested in whether your site is perfect today. They will also look at whether you understand the barriers, whether you are acting responsibly and whether disabled users have a route to ask for support.

Accessibility Statement Support From Access By Design

Access by Design creates accessibility statements that are clear, honest and based on evidence. We do not write vague promises. We do not generate empty compliance wording. We test first, then write the statement around the real condition of your website.

Our approach is practical. We explain what the statement needs to say, what should not be claimed and where the biggest risks are. We help your organisation understand the difference between technical compliance, user experience and legal exposure.

We can also help you review existing accessibility statements. Many organisations already have a page on their site, but it may be outdated, incomplete or too vague to be useful. Some statements still refer to old standards. Others have no testing date, no contact method or no meaningful explanation of known issues.

We will tell you plainly if your current statement is weak. That may feel uncomfortable, but it is better to know before someone else points it out. Your statement is one of the first things people will judge. It should not be an afterthought.

Strong accessibility statements do 4 things well. They apologise where users are being excluded. They explain known barriers accurately. They show what is being done. They give users a clear way to ask for help.

That is the standard we work to. A good statement is not just a compliance page. It is a sign of respect. It tells disabled users that you know access matters, that you are listening and that you are taking responsibility.

If you need an accessibility statement that properly reflects your website, we can help. The safest first step is an audit, followed by a professionally written statement that gives your organisation a clear and defensible position.

You can also review the official GOV.UK model accessibility statement and the ADA.gov web accessibility guidance for wider context.

Contact Access by Design to discuss your website, your current statement and the safest next step.