Accessibility Statement

An accessibility statement describes a website's accessibility status, identifies known barriers, and provides contact information for users who need help.

What is an accessibility statement?

An accessibility statement is a public page on a website that explains how accessible the site is. It describes which accessibility standard the site follows (usually WCAG), lists any known issues, and gives users a way to report problems or request help. It is both a transparency tool for visitors and a compliance signal for regulators.^[1]

What must an accessibility statement include?

Under EU rules, public sector statements must contain a defined set of elements. These have become the standard for private sector sites too:

Compliance status — Whether the site fully meets, partly meets, or does not meet WCAG 2.1 AA. "Partially conformant" means some content falls short.^[2]
Non-accessible content — A list of known issues, why they exist (technical limitation, disproportionate burden, or exempt content), and what alternatives users can use.
Date — When the statement was first published and when it was last reviewed.
Contact method — An email address or form where users can report accessibility problems.
Enforcement information — For public sector bodies, details on the authority users can escalate complaints to.

An honest, specific statement matters more than a polished one. Vague language like "we strive for accessibility" does not count as compliant under EU or UK law.

What is disproportionate burden?

EU law allows organizations to skip certain fixes if the cost far outweighs the benefit. But this is not a blanket exemption. The organization must document its assessment, explain it in the statement, and offer accessible alternatives where possible. The claim must be reviewed regularly — a fix that was too costly last year may be feasible now.^[3]

Legal teams should treat disproportionate burden claims with care. Regulators expect them to be specific and well-documented, not a way to avoid doing the work.

What content is exempt?

Some content types are outside the scope of the EU Web Accessibility Directive:

Pre-recorded audio or video published before September 2020
Third-party content the organization does not fund or control
Office files (PDFs, Word documents) published before September 2018, unless needed for an active process
Online maps, if essential navigation info is available in accessible form elsewhere

Even exempt content should be listed in the statement with a clear explanation.

How do you write a good statement?

A well-written statement is direct. It describes the actual state of the site, not hopes or plans. It should be updated after every audit and whenever major new features go live. A statement older than one year is likely outdated and may itself be a compliance risk.

Content teams own the statement's text. IT teams provide the audit data it is based on. Legal teams review it for regulatory accuracy.

Who must publish an accessibility statement?

EU public sector bodies — Required by the Web Accessibility Directive. This includes government agencies, public hospitals, universities, and courts.
Private sector in the EU — The European Accessibility Act, enforceable from June 2025, extends requirements to companies selling products or services in the EU.
UK public sector — Required under the Public Sector Bodies Accessibility Regulations 2018.
UK private sector — Not legally required yet, but publishing one shows due diligence under the Equality Act 2010.

For large organizations with hundreds of thousands of monthly visitors, an up-to-date accessibility statement is not just a legal checkbox. It builds trust with users who need it most. Regular accessibility audits provide the data needed to keep the statement accurate.^[1]

How Askem Helps

An accessibility statement must reflect the actual state of the site — and that state changes every time new content is published. Continuous monitoring tools help organizations keep their statements accurate without relying solely on periodic audits. Tools like Askem provide up-to-date compliance data, so teams can update their known-issues list before a user or regulator finds a problem first. For organizations with multiple domains or subsites, monitoring all properties from a single platform keeps every statement current without manual spot checks.

Sources

W3C WAI — Developing an Accessibility Statement: https://www.w3.org/WAI/planning/statements/
European Commission — Web Accessibility Directive sample accessibility statement: https://ec.europa.eu/digital-building-blocks/wikis/display/WEBACCESIBILITY/Accessibility+statements
European Commission — Disproportionate burden assessment: https://ec.europa.eu/digital-building-blocks/wikis/display/WEBACCESIBILITY/Disproportionate+burden