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Accessibility
Accessibility Statement for the Professional Standards Authority
This accessibility statement applies to www.professionalstandards.org.uk
This website is run by The Professional Standards Authority for Health and Social Care (PSA).
How you should be able to use this website
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 200% without the text spilling off the screen
- navigate most of the website using 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 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
Parts of this website are not fully accessible. For example:
- The skip navigation doesn’t work as intended on all pages
- Some pages have incorrect heading structures
- Some form fields are not labelled
- It’s not clear for some form fields which are mandatory
- Some text is obscured when zoomed
- Users won’t always be notified when there are errors with form submission
- There are inconsistencies in how some visuals have been labelled
- Some navigation elements have poor colour contrast.
What to do if you cannot access part of this website
If you can’t access part of this website, and/or need information on this website in a different format like accessible PDF, large print, easy read, audio recording or braille, please contact us at info@professionalstandards.org.uk.
In your message, include:
- the web address (URL) of the content
- your email address and name
- the format you need - for example, plain text, braille, BSL, large print or audio CD.
Alternatively, details of how to contact us by phone or visit us in person are given below.
Reporting accessibility problems with this website
If you find any problems that are not listed on this page or you think we’re not meeting the accessibility requirements for reasons not already set out, contact us.
Contacting us by phone or visiting us in person
You can contact us by phone by calling 020 7389 8030.
Our office address is Professional Standards Authority for Health and Social Care, 16-18 New Bridge Street, Blackfriars, London EC4V 6AG. If you would like to visit us in person, please contact us by email, phone or by writing to us at this address to arrange.
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 Professional Standards Authority 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
This website is partially compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines version 2.2 A and AA standards, due to the non-compliances and exemptions listed below.
Non accessible content
Non-compliance with the accessibility regulations
Navigation and page structure
- Some pages contain a ‘skip to main content’ link that does not move focus correctly or requires multiple activations. This means keyboard and screen reader users must navigate repeated content every time. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 2.4.1.
- Many pages have heading levels that are skipped (for example, starting at H2 instead of H1, or jumping from H2 to H4), and Welsh‑language pages exhibit inconsistent tab order. This makes navigation difficult for users of assistive technologies. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criteria 1.3.1, and 2.4.6.
- Several form fields, including combo boxes, lack programmatically associated labels. This prevents screen reader users from understanding what information is required. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criteria 1.1.1, 1.3.1, 1.3.5, 2.5.3, 3.3.2, and 4.1.2.
- Mandatory form fields are marked visually with an asterisk, but the symbol is not explained and is not announced to screen reader users. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criteria 1.1.1, 1.3.5, 3.3.2, and 4.1.2.
- Error messages do not always appear for each incorrect field, are not descriptive, and are not consistently announced to assistive technologies. Users are not provided with a full list of errors. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criteria
1.4.1, 3.3.1, 3.3.3, 3.3.4, and 4.1.3. - Some components have accessible names that differ from their visible labels. This confuses users of assistive technologies and speech‑recognition software. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criteria 1.1.1, 1.3.1, 2.5.3, 1.3.5, 3.3.2 and 4.1.2.
- Filtering content or selecting options causes updates that are not announced to screen readers, meaning users may not realise the page content has changed. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criteria 3.2.1, 3.2.2, and 4.1.3.
- Multiple colour combinations (including yellow focus rings on white, purple, and peach backgrounds) fail to meet minimum contrast requirements, making text and focus indicators hard to see for people with low vision. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criteria 1.4.3 and 1.4.11.
- Some elements do not display a visible focus outline, or the focus indicator becomes obscured by surrounding content. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criteria 2.4.7 and 2.4.11.
- Some elements do not display a visible focus outline, or the focus indicator becomes obscured by surrounding content. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criteria
2.4.7 and 2.4.11. - Some elements do not display a visible focus outline, or the focus indicator becomes obscured by surrounding content. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criteria
2.4.7 and 2.4.11. - At 200% text enlargement, navigation items and other content become obscured or cut off. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 1.4.4.
- Links such as “Read more”, “Explore all”, “View all”, and “2025” appear frequently and are not descriptive when read on their own from a screen reader “links list”. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criteria 2.4.4 and 2.4.9.
- Some components are coded in ways that do not match their expected HTML role, causing unpredictable behaviour (e.g., dropdown filters triggering unexpected page loads, inconsistent behaviour when navigating back).
Furthermore, some Welsh‑language search filters remain in English. This fails WCAG success criteria 1.3.1, 3.2.3, 3.2.4, and 4.1.2.
In addition, the following content is not fully accessible because it relies on third-party tools that we cannot fully modify:
- Content translated through WeGlot [ARIA labels]
- Embedded YouTube and Vimeo videos [colour contrast]
Disproportionate burden
Content that’s not within the scope of the accessibility regulations
The accessibility regulations do not require us to fix PDFs or other documents published before 23 September 2018 if they’re not essential to providing our services.
How we tested this website
Following the launch of this website in January 2025, which had been developed to be compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines version 2.2 AA standard, we commissioned an independent accessibility audit by Shaw Trust Accessibility Services.
The website was evaluated against the W3C Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) up to conformance level AA. This website met 10 of the 20 (50%) applicable success criteria required for level A conformance and 8 of the 18 (44%) applicable success criteria required for level AA conformance.
What we’re doing to improve accessibility
We are working with the website developers (Williams Commerce) to understand the extent of development work needed to address the compliance issues. While we will prioritise Level A issues, our goal is to achieve accreditation for Level AA compliance by July 2026.
Preparation of this accessibility statement
This statement was prepared on 28 October 2021. It was last reviewed on 4 February 2026.
This website was last tested in November 2025 against the WCAG 2.2 A and AA standards.
Updated on 9 February 2026