As part of our Post Office Accessibility Policy we:
Our accessibility goals
Follow WCAG 2.2 AA of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0 for all digital projects and initiatives
Conduct formal and informal accessibility evaluations against the guidelines throughout development
Harness the support of independent bodies such as AbilityNet to advise, train and evaluate us
Proactively seek to improve accessibility through continuous improvement and widening the scope of those improvements
Using this website
There are a number of features on this website that you can use to navigate and engage with the content. You can:
- Change colours, contrast levels and fonts
- View the website in both portrait and landscape orientation on mobile
- Zoom in up to 400% without the text overlapping for most content
- Navigate most of the website using just a keyboard, including being able to easily bypass repetitive menu links via a skip-to-content link on all pages
- Navigate most of the website using speech recognition software
- Listen to most of the website using a screen reader such as NVDA or VoiceOver
The independent accessibility advisor to Post Office, AbilityNet, has advice on making your device easier to use if you have a disability.
How accessible is this website?
We know that some parts of this website are not fully accessible:
- Some PDF documents may not be fully accessible to screen reader software. Contact us to request an alternative version of PDF content
- Older video content may not be fully accessible in terms of audio description
A full listing of known issues that may affect users with disabilities is available under non-accessible content later on this page.
Feedback and report accessibility problems with this website
We’re always looking to improve the accessibility of this website. Please contact accessibility@postoffice.co.uk if you:
- Find any problems not listed on this page
- Think we’re not meeting accessibility requirements
- Would like to receive something in a different format to support your needs
All issues and queries that are submitted are sent directly to Post Office Digital. This is the department within Post Office that governs the standards on this website. They'll review and respond to all issues and queries and aim to respond within 10 working days.
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The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) is responsible for enforcing the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) 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).
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All our branches provide different levels of accessible support. If you’d like to speak to someone in person regarding any Post Office products or services, please visit our branch finder to search for branches near you and see which provide the accessible support and facilities you might need. Look for the ‘branch accessibility details’ link on each branch details page to see a list of facilities available.
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The Post Office is committed to making its website accessible, in accordance with the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) Accessibility Regulations 2018.
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This website is partially compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines version 2.1 AA standard, due to the non-compliances and exemptions listed below.
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The content listed below is non-accessible for the following reasons.
Non-compliance with the accessibility regulations
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There are some functional images, including some images used in tooltip buttons, that lack a text alternative for assistive technology users. (WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.1.1) – On Post Office backlog to be fixed in 2024.
There are a few pieces of static non-text content, such as some informative images and icons that do not have a text alternative for assistive technology users. (WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.1.1) – On Post Office backlog to be fixed in 2024.
There are some decorative images which are not marked up with empty alternative text to instruct assistive technology to ignore them. These may announce unnecessarily for screen reader users. (WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.1.1) – On Post Office backlog to be fixed in 2024.
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The colour scheme on the website does not provide sufficient contrast for some text and user interface components, such as functional social media logo icons. (WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.4.3 and 1.4.11) – On Post Office backlog to be fixed in 2024.
Colour alone is used to communicate certain information, such as fields with errors in the general enquiries form. (WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.4.1) – On Post Office backlog to be fixed in 2024.
Some links are identified using colour alone. (WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.4.1) – On Post Office backlog to be fixed in 2024.
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The heading order is illogical on some pages, with skipped heading levels and parent and child headings inappropriately at the same level. Some text is marked up as a heading but does not act semantically as a heading on the page. Other text is correctly displayed visually as a heading but is not marked up as such for assistive technology. (WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.3.1) – On Post Office backlog to be fixed in 2024.
Visually displayed lists in the search results are not marked up as lists for assistive technology. (WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.3.1) – On Post Office backlog to be fixed in 2024.
The breadcrumb navigation does not communicate the current page to assistive technology. (WCAG 2.1 success criterion 4.1.2) – On Post Office backlog to be fixed in 2024.
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A few form controls do not have labels that are available for assistive technology. (WCAG 2.1 success criterion 4.1.2) – On Post Office backlog to be fixed in 2024.
Some required form fields are not identified as required for users. (WCAG 2.1 success criterion 3.3.2) – On Post Office backlog to be fixed in 2024.
Some error messages in forms are not communicated to assistive technology users. (WCAG 2.1 success criterion 3.3.1) – On Post Office backlog to be fixed in 2024.
Some help content in tooltips with instructions for form inputs is not announced for screen readers. (WCAG 2.1 success criterion 4.1.2) – On Post Office backlog to be fixed in 2024.
The input purpose is not programmatically defined for some fields that collect personal information in forms. (WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.3.5) – On Post Office backlog to be fixed in 2024.
Some instructions for input fields in the mortgages affordability calculator are not immediately apparent for users. (WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.3.2) – On Post Office backlog to be fixed in 2024.
Content that’s not within the scope of the accessibility regulations
- PDFs published before 23 September 2018
- Third-party content outside of the control of the organisation
What we’re doing to improve accessibility
In 2018, Post Office undertook a major programme of activity to improve accessibility and inclusive design. This began with heavy investment in a new in-house digital team, providing a stable platform for us to effectively govern all the work that we do.
We then drafted the support of an independent body, AbilityNet, to advise us on where we could improve our digital estate, which has fundamentally changed how we work. But, we’re not stopping there. Here are just some of the ongoing steps we’re taking:
- Dedicated resource allocation in every development sprint to ensure historic issues can be picked up and fixed, and further improvements made
- Regular reviews of our ways of working to ensure accessibility
- Expanding our accessibility guardians programme, sharing knowledge across the organisation and offering accessibility training
- Continued partnership with AbilityNet to ensure independent reviews are conducted on our major digital initiatives
Preparation of this accessibility statement
As part of a major re-platforming of this website between 2021 – 2023, AbilityNet conducted a series of accessibility audits, including the design system that is shared across the platform, along with a number of key pages, modules and assets that drive the website experience. These were tested against WCAG 2.1 AA on 24 April 2023.
In October 2023 the Worldwide Web Consortium formally approved WCAG 2.2 as the new web standard, and this has become the standard now followed by Post Office. As part of this update and our ongoing drive to improve Post Office digital platforms, we continue to partner with AbilityNet, invest in training our people, and ensure our sprints of design and development activity include improvements to our platform accessibility.