Accessibility


This accessibility statement applies to the Covid-19 Inquiry website available at https://covid19.public-inquiry.uk as well as a survey available at https://www.everystorymatters.co.uk.

This website and survey are run by the UK Covid-19 Inquiry team. We want as many people as possible to be able to use these services. For example, that means you should be able to:

  • zoom in up to 400% without the text spilling off the screen
  • navigate most of the website using just a keyboard
  • navigate most of the website using speech recognition software
  • listen to most of the website using a screen reader (including the most recent versions of JAWS, NVDA and VoiceOver).

We’ve also made the website and survey text as simple as possible to understand.

AbilityNet has advice on making your device easier to use if you have a disability.

Feedback and contact information

If you need information on this website or survey in a different format like accessible PDF, large print, easy read, audio recording or braille:

We’ll consider your request and respond within 10 working days.

Reporting accessibility problems with this website

We’re always looking to improve the accessibility of these services. If you find any problems not listed on this page or think we’re not meeting accessibility requirements, please contact us at:

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).

If you are in Northern Ireland and are not happy with how we respond to your complaint you can contact the Equalities Commission for Northern Ireland who are responsible for enforcing the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018 (the ‘accessibility regulations’) in Northern Ireland.

Technical information about this website’s accessibility

The Inquiry is committed to making its website and other web services accessible, in accordance with the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018.

Compliance status

This website and other web services do not meet all of the relevant success criteria up to and including level AA of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) version 2.1.

We will aim to resolve any issues you experience in using these services as soon as possible.

Non-compliance with the accessibility regulations

Two separate rounds of internal accessibility testing against the WCAG 2.1 success criteria have been conducted on the website and ‘Share your experience’ survey, and all known issues uncovered up to and beyond level AA have been resolved. This does not mean that there won’t be an issue for some with navigating the services’ pages or using their functionality.

  • Some PDF documents on the Inquiry website may not be fully accessible to users. If you experience any issues, please contact the Inquiry using the contact details provided below and we will aim to provide an alternative format.

Every Story Matters

This service includes two features that allow you to generate PDF documents.

  1. Saving and resuming your submission to the Inquiry
    If for any reason you do not wish to complete the form in one go, you can choose to generate a unique link. That link allows you to return to the service for the next three weeks. A PDF document can be downloaded that contains this unique link. There are additional options provided to save your unique link.
  2. Saving a copy of your completed submission to the Inquiry
    After you have completed the form, you will be given the option to download a copy of your submission in a PDF document. The PDF also contains a copy of other information that is presented on the ‘thank you’ page of the service. Including your unique withdrawal code and information about support services that are available.

Known issues with these generated PDF documents

There are three known issues:

  1. Language is not specified
  2. Some elements have the wrong annotation tag
  3. Links do not include alternate descriptions

What we’re doing to improve accessibility

We continue to explore options to make these PDF documents more accessible. Guidance on the accessibility of the generated PDF documents will be updated as issues are addressed.

If you encounter any issues navigating these services or using their functionality please don’t hesitate to contact us:

Preparation of this accessibility statement

This statement was prepared on 21 January 2022 and last updated 23 May 2023. This website was last tested on 24 April 2023. The test was carried out by Digital Accessibility Centre on 24 April 2023. It was last reviewed on 22 May 2023 by the UK Covid-19 Inquiry team. The survey linked above was last tested on 24 April 2023.