Accessibility statement for Business Wales
This accessibility statement applies to information on the Business Wales website and associated specialist business support sections of the website.
Each specialist service has its own accessibility page. It outlines how accessible the service is, how to report problems and how to request information in an alternative format. You can access these pages from the footer inside the individual service’s web pages.
Using this website
This website is run by Business Wales. 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
- 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
- use most of the website using a screen reader (including the most recent versions of JAWS, NVDA and VoiceOver)
We’ve 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
We know some parts of this website are not fully accessible:
- some pages and document attachments are not clearly written
- some hyperlinks won’t reflow above 300%
- some tables do not have row headers
- some heading elements are not consistent
- some page titles are not unique
- some form labels are not unique
- some images do not have good alternative text
- some link text does not describe the purpose of the link
- many documents are in PDF format and are not accessible
Business Wales specialist services
Each specialist service has its own accessibility page, with details of how accessible the service is, how to report problems and how to request information in an alternative format. You can access these pages from the footer inside the individual service’s web pages.
Request information in a different format
If you need information on this website in a different format like plain text, braille, BSL, large print, easy read or audio recording:
- email: businesssupport@gov.wales
- phone: 03000 6 03000
We'll need you to tell us:
- the web address (URL) of the information you need
- your email address and name
- the format you would like to receive - for example, plain text, braille, BSL, large print or audio CD
- which assistive technologies you use
You can request a PDF in an accessible format from its page. Select ‘Request an accessible format’ to contact the organisation that published the document.
We’ll review your request and get back to you in 7 working days.
Feedback and contact information
We’re always looking to improve the accessibility of this website. If you find any problems that are not listed on this page or think we’re not meeting the requirements of the accessibility regulations, contact us on one of the ways below:
- email: businesssupport@gov.wales
- phone: 03000 6 03000
We'll need you to tell us:
- the web address (URL) of the page you think we’re not meeting accessibility requirements
- why you think we’re not meeting accessibility requirements
We’ll review your request and get back to you in 7 working days.
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, please contact the Equality Advisory and Support Service (EASS).
Contacting us by phone or visiting us in person
Ofcom requires all landline and mobile telephone companies to provide a number of services for customers with disabilities. You can use the text relay service of your choice to contact Business Wales.
Our offices have audio induction loops, or if you contact us before your visit, we will make every effort to arrange a British Sign Language (BSL) interpreter. Just contact us on one of the ways below:
- email: businesssupport@gov.wales
- phone: 03000 6 03000
We'll need you to tell us:
- who you are
- how we can help you
We’ll review your request and get back to you in 7 working days.
Technical information about this website’s accessibility
Business Wales 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 2.1 AA standard, due to the non-compliances listed below.
Non-accessible content
The content listed below is non-accessible for the following reasons: Non-compliance with the accessibility regulations.
Some headings are empty, meaning assistive technology users cannot understand the structure or hierarchy of the content. This fails success criteria WCAG 2.2 A 1.3.1 and AA 2.4.6. We resolved every known issue of this in May 2025.
Some image elements do not have an accessible name. Without an accessible name, screen reader users may encounter difficulties in comprehending the meaning or function of an image on a webpage. This fails success criterion WCAG 2.2 A 1.1.1. We plan to resolve this issue by August 2025
Some data tables do not use <th> elements to identify row and column headers, and some layout tables are not marked with role="presentation", making it difficult for screen reader users to understand the structure and purpose of the tables. This fails success criteria WCAG 2.2 A 1.3.1. We plan to resolve this issue by August 2025
Some text and background colour combinations do not have sufficient contrast, making content difficult to read for users with visual impairments. This fails success criteria WCAG 2.2 AA 1.4.3. We resolved every known issue of this in May 2025.
Some links do not have accessible names, meaning screen reader users cannot determine their purpose or destination. This fails success criteria WCAG 2.2 A 2.4.4. We resolved every known issue of this in May 2025.
Several links on a page share the same link text and surrounding context but lead to different destinations, which can confuse screen reader users. This fails success criteria WCAG 2.2 A 2.4.4. We plan to resolve this issue by August 2025
Some links use vague text like "Click Here" without surrounding context to explain their purpose, which makes it difficult for assistive technology users to understand where the link leads. This fails success criteria WCAG 2.2 A 2.4.4. We plan to resolve this issue by August 2025
Some pages use nested tables, which can confuse screen reader users because the reading order and structure become unclear. This fails success criteria WCAG 2.2 A 1.3.1. We plan to resolve this issue by August 2025
Some text is styled visually like headings using CSS but lacks proper HTML heading tags, which means assistive technologies cannot correctly interpret the document structure. This fails success criteria WCAG 2.2 A 1.3.1. We resolved every known issue of this in May 2025.
Some image alt text contains ASCII art or smiley characters, which do not provide meaningful information to screen reader users and can be confusing or disruptive. This fails success criteria WCAG 2.2 A 1.1.1. We plan to resolve this issue by August 2025
Non-compliance with the accessibility regulations
The technologies listed below is non-accessible for the following reasons: Non-compliance with the accessibility regulations.
Some select elements appear within anchor (a) elements, which creates invalid HTML and can confuse assistive technologies or cause unexpected behaviour. This fails success criteria WCAG 2.2 A 4.1.2. We plan to resolve this issue by August 2025
Some pages contain a lang attribute with an invalid language code, which can prevent assistive technologies from correctly determining the language of the content. This fails success criteria WCAG 2.2 A 3.1.1. We resolved every known issue of this on in May 2025.
Some input elements appear within anchor (a) elements, which results in invalid HTML and can cause issues for users relying on assistive technologies. This fails success criteria WCAG 2.2 A 4.1.2. We plan to resolve this issue by August 2025
Some label elements are nested within anchor (a) elements, which is not valid HTML and may cause issues with how forms are announced by assistive technologies. This fails success criteria WCAG 2.2 A 4.1.2. We plan to resolve this issue by August 2025
Some anchor (a) elements are nested within other anchor elements, which is invalid HTML and can confuse screen readers and other assistive technologies. This fails success criteria WCAG 2.2 A 4.1.2. We plan to resolve this issue by August 2025
Some clickable controls are missing appropriate ARIA roles, which means assistive technologies may not correctly interpret them as interactive elements. This fails success criteria WCAG 2.2 A 4.1.2. We plan to resolve this issue by August 2025
Some clickable controls cannot be accessed using a keyboard alone, making them unusable for people who rely on keyboard navigation. This fails success criteria WCAG 2.2 A 2.1.1. We plan to resolve this issue by August 2025
Some iframe and frame elements lack a descriptive title attribute, which is necessary for assistive technologies to convey the purpose of the embedded content. This fails success criteria WCAG 2.2 A 1.1.1. We resolved every known issue of this in May 2025.
Some elements use a role that hides child elements but still contain focusable child elements. This can create confusion for keyboard and screen reader users, who may be able to interact with elements that are meant to be hidden. This fails success criteria WCAG 2.2 A 4.1.2. We resolved every known issue in May 2025.
Some elements with role=tab are not correctly grouped within or referenced by an element with role=tablist. This prevents assistive technologies from accurately conveying the relationship between tabs and their group, leading to confusion for users navigating by screen reader. This fails success criteria WCAG 2.2 A 4.1.2. We resolved every known issue of this in May 2025.
Some elements are marked with aria-hidden="true" but contain focusable content. This can confuse screen reader and keyboard users, as the content is hidden from assistive technologies but still accessible via keyboard navigation. This fails success criteria WCAG 2.2 A 4.1.2. We resolved every known issue of this in May 2025.
Interactive tools and transactions
There are no known non-accessible Interactive tools and transactions on Business Wales. If you believe some of our Interactive tools and transactions are non-accessible. Please contact us on one of the ways below:
- email: businesssupport@gov.wales
- phone: 03000 6 03000
We'll need you to tell us:
- the web address (URL) of the page you think we’re not meeting accessibility requirements
- why you think we’re not meeting accessibility requirements
We’ll review your request and get back to you in 7 working days.
PDFs and other documents
New documents we publish to access our services should be fully accessible.
However, we know that some of our older documents (published before 23 September 2018) are not accessible. For example, some of them:
- are not marked up in a way that allows screen reader users to understand them
- are not tagged up properly, for example they do not contain proper headings
- are not written in plain English
Some of these are historic documents and are not essential to providing our services. These types of documents are exempt from the regulations. We do not currently have any plans to make them accessible.
If you need to access information in one of these document types, please contact us on one of the ways below and ask for an alternative format.
- email: businesssupport@gov.wales
- phone: 03000 6 03000
We'll need you to tell us:
- the web address (URL) of the information you need
- the format you would like to receive
- which assistive technologies you use
We’ll review your request and get back to you in 7 working days.
Preparation of this accessibility statement
This statement was prepared on 8 January 2025 to replace the previous accessibility statement. The statement was last reviewed on 20 June 2025.
How we tested the website
This website was last tested on 9 May 2025. The test was carried out by S8080.
On the 9 May 2025 S8080 used SortSite Desktop to scan over 8,000 of our pages for compliancy to level A and AA of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines Version 2.2. The scan included a combination of core pages, commonly used templates and complex templates.
We tested our main website platform, available at https://businesswales.gov.wales/
As well as some of our specialist services managed by the Business Wales team including: