Independently certified to WCAG 2.2 AA
We want everyone to be heard. Whoever your respondents are, and whatever technology they use, they should be able to complete your survey without barriers. We design inclusively, test with people who use assistive technology, and have our work checked independently by the Digital Accessibility Centre (DAC).
The SmartSurvey survey-taking experience (the pages your respondents use to complete a survey) has been independently certified by the Digital Accessibility Centre against the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2 to level AA, on both desktop and mobile, with no outstanding level A or AA issues.
A DAC audit goes well beyond an automated scan. Their team carried out a manual technical review alongside end-to-end user testing by analysts with lived experience of disability, including people who are blind or partially sighted, and people with colour blindness, dyslexia, mobility impairments, learning difficulties, deafness, autism and anxiety.
Our accreditation (certificate SmartSurvey/25) is published on the DAC website.
Does this statement cover your survey?
This statement covers surveys taken on our current survey platform. You can tell which platform a survey runs on from its link:
- Links containing /t/ (for example
smartsurvey.co.uk/t/theme-preview) are covered by this statement. - Links containing /s/ (for example
smartsurvey.co.uk/s/theme-preview) run on our classic platform, which has its own accessibility statement.
Accessibility built in as standard
On our current platform every survey is accessible from the start. Unlike our classic platform, there is no separate accessible theme to choose. Every survey supports:
- Screen readers: questions and pages use proper headings, labels and groupings, so you can navigate and answer with a screen reader on desktop or mobile.
- Keyboard-only use: every question can be reached, answered and corrected using only a keyboard, with a visible focus indicator throughout.
- Zoom and reflow: content reflows without loss of function at up to 400% browser zoom, and respects custom text spacing.
- Colour and contrast: default palettes meet WCAG contrast requirements, information is never conveyed by colour alone, and surveys work with high-contrast and inverted colour modes.
- Clear error handling: required questions and validation errors are identified in text and announced to assistive technology, so you can find and fix mistakes.
- Save and continue: longer surveys can be saved part-way and resumed later.
Every question type is accessible
DAC's audit covered the complete survey journey. Seventeen test journeys took in every question type we offer, including:
- Text questions: single text box, multiple text boxes, comment/essay box, email, number
- Choice questions: multiple choice (radio buttons), checkboxes, dropdown, searchable dropdown
- Rating questions: star rating, Likert scale, Net Promoter® Score, CSAT, CES and other customer experience scales
- Matrix questions: radio button, checkbox, text box and dropdown matrices, and semantic differential
- Interactive questions: slider, ranking, date and time, continuous sum, file upload
- Survey features: required questions and validation, page descriptions, sub-headings, save and continue, and the survey completion page
That list includes the question types with known limitations on our classic platform. Slider, ranking, searchable dropdown and the date picker are all fully accessible on the current platform.
Tested with assistive technology
During the DAC audit, surveys were tested by users of the following technologies:
If you use a different assistive technology and run into a problem, please tell us at accessibility@smartsurvey.co.uk.
Completing a survey with a screen reader
Surveys are structured to make navigation straightforward:
- The survey title is the top-level heading and each question is a heading below it, so you can jump between questions using your screen reader's heading shortcuts before deciding where to start.
- Questions are grouped as form regions. Forms and focus mode in NVDA and JAWS work naturally, and you can move between answers using form control shortcuts.
- If a page contains errors when you press Next, the errors are announced and identified against the affected questions in text.
- On longer surveys, look for the Save and continue option near the end of the page if you want to come back later.
Keeping your surveys accessible: guidance for survey creators
An accessible platform is only half the story; the content of a survey matters too. A few principles will keep your surveys accessible for every respondent:
- Contrast: our default theme colours meet WCAG contrast requirements. If you customise colours, check that text keeps a contrast ratio of at least 4.5:1 against its background.
- Images: add alternative text to any images you include, and don't rely on an image alone to convey a question.
- Plain language: keep questions short, specific and free of jargon. It helps everyone, particularly respondents with cognitive differences.
- Question choice: prefer straightforward question types where possible, and keep pages to a manageable number of questions.
Our help centre has detailed guides on creating an accessible survey and choosing accessible questions.
Standards and regulations
Our survey-taking experience is certified against WCAG 2.2 level AA, the current version of the international accessibility standard. WCAG 2.2 AA underpins the accessibility requirements most of our customers work to, including:
- the UK Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) Accessibility Regulations 2018
- the European standard EN 301 549 and the European Accessibility Act
- Section 508 of the US Rehabilitation Act
Using an independently certified survey platform supports your organisation's obligations under these regulations for the surveys you send. If you need supporting information for your own accessibility statement or a procurement exercise, contact us.
Help us improve
Accessibility work at SmartSurvey doesn't stop at an audit. We keep testing and improving, and feedback from people who use assistive technology shapes what we work on next.
If you have access needs and would like to share feedback, or take part in testing future improvements, please get in touch at accessibility@smartsurvey.co.uk.
