Contents

Overview

Designing accessible, inclusive and sustainable services helps create fairer, more effective and resilient public services. 

Public services in Wales must comply with:

Understanding accessible and inclusive services

Accessible and inclusive services work for everyone, including:

  • disabled people
  • older people
  • people in vulnerable situations
  • people whose first language is not Welsh or English

Designing for them helps:

  • remove barriers to access and use
  • improve outcomes for all users
  • meet legal requirements
  • build trust and confidence in public services

Accessibility means people can use your service regardless of their needs, abilities or the technology they use. This includes people with:

  • visual, hearing, motor or cognitive impairments
  • temporary or situational disabilities
  • different devices, browsers or assistive technologies

Accessibility is not just about the technology, it also includes clear content, simple journeys and usable interactions.

Inclusion means recognising and respecting diversity, including:

  • language and literacy differences
  • cultural identities
  • socio-economic factors and digital exclusion

A service can be technically accessible but still feel exclusive. Inclusive design helps everyone feel the service is for them.

The cost of inaccessible services

Inaccessible services create extra work and worse outcomes. Users may:

  • call your support line for basic tasks
  • drop out of a service entirely
  • receive poor support or outcomes

This creates extra work for the service provider. 

The social model of disability

Public organisations in Wales follow the principles of the social model of disability. It says people are disabled by barriers in society, not by their impairments.

Barriers may be physical, digital or attitudinal. Removing them gives people more independence, choice and control.

Learn more about the social model of disability on Scope.

Sustainable services

Public services in Wales must consider long-term impact and prevention to comply with the Well-being of Future Generations (Wales) Act 2015. Sustainable services are:

  • adaptable and long-lasting
  • resource-aware and low waste
  • designed to support well-being now and in the future
  • collaborative across sectors, organisations and communities

Sustainability means thinking socially, economically, culturally and environmentally.

Designing for everyone

Design for accessibility, inclusion and sustainability from the start. Some things you can do include:

  • follow standards like the WCAG 2.2 and Welsh Government accessibility standards
  • design flexible journeys and offer digital, phone and face-to-face options
  • write in plain language and structure content clearly
  • add captions, transcripts, alt text and accessible formats
  • research and test with real and diverse users and communities
  • train your team and use accessibility tools regularly
  • work with specialists and audit your service as it evolves

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