Providing accessible content makes the web easier for people with disabilities to use.
The Disability Discrimination Act 1992 (Cth) requires agencies to ensure people with disabilities have the same access to information and services as others in the community.
Victorian legislation that protects the rights of people with disabilities includes:
- Disability Act 2006 (opens in a new window)
- Equal Opportunity Act 2010 (opens in a new window)
- Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities Act 2006 (opens in a new window)
The State Disability Plan 2022–2026 commits every Victorian Government department to reforms of policies, programs and services, including accessible communications and universal design.
The Victorian Government Digital Strategy 2021–2026 includes as one of its key outcomes a commitment to delivering better, fairer, more accessible services.
Requirements for digital content
Accessibility is how you can avoid setting up barriers for people with diverse abilities.
When you design content, it needs to serve people with:
- age-related conditions
- changing abilities
- disability
- health issues
- cognitive, neurological and learning disabilities.
All Victorian Government online services must meet level AA of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1. This applies to both internal and external digital content.
Content on Single Digital Presence websites must follow the Australian Government Style Manual, which provides detailed guidance on designing accessible and inclusive content.
vic.gov.au aims to meet level AA of WCAG 2.1 as part of a commitment to provide a website that is accessible to the widest possible audience, regardless of technology or ability.
This includes ensuring that all media (images, video and audio) meets accessibility requirements and that content in documents is published as HTML-first, with embedded documents provided only as secondary support.
Find out how to make content accessible.
Common accessibility issues
Some common reasons that pages fail to meet accessibility requirements include:
- downloadable PDF, Word docs and other files are embedded without an equivalent HTML version of the content
- content is not written in plain language
- videos are embedded without a transcript
- heading levels do not follow a logical sequence.
If content does not meet accessibility requirements
When some content on a page does not meet accessibility requirements, the publishing queue approver should notify the editor and, through consultation, they must decide to either:
- Update the page to meet the requirements, such as by making the inaccessible content accessible or removing it.
- Publish the page, including the inaccessible content, on the condition that an accessibility notice is placed on the page and a plan to improve the content is in place.
Accessibility notice to display on page
For pages with any content that does not meet accessibility requirements, this notice must be placed on the page.
The Victorian Government is committed to providing accessible information. This page may not meet level AA of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.1. If you are unable to use any of the content of this page, you can contact us to request an accessible version.
Contact email:
Contact number:
Sample message to editor
Subject: Accessibility requirements not met
Hi ______,
The page you have submitted for review includes some content that does not meet the required accessibility standards. Therefore, we can not publish it yet.
[Describe where the requirements are not being met]
The Disability Discrimination Act 1992 requires agencies to ensure people with disabilities have the same access to information and services as others in the community. All Victorian Government online services must meet level AA of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.1. These standards apply to internal and external digital content.
Please update your page to meet these requirements.
[Suggest options]
If you cannot make the page accessible and would still like to proceed with publishing, a disclaimer notice will be placed on the page. You must also respond to this message with the following acknowledgement:
I understand that the following page does not meet WCAG AA standards. I accept the responsibility for any action that may be initiated by failing to comply. I also agree to provide contact details for anybody seeking an accessible version of our information. These contact details will be published with an accessibility notice on the webpage.
Page title and link:
Reason for exception:
Contact email:
Contact phone number:
Authorised by:
Date:
Please let us know if you have any questions.
[Sign off]
Addressing accessibility issues
The Australian Government Style Manual has detailed guidance on why and how to make content accessible, including how to:
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