Accessibility

Qualifications Scotland is working towards creating an accessible website for all.

This accessibility statement applies to content published on the understandingstandards.org.uk domain. It does not apply to content on other Qualifications Scotland domains, (for example qualifications.gov.scot) or sub domains (for example secure.qualifications.gov.scot)

This website is owned and managed by Qualifications Scotland. We want as many people as possible to be able to use this website. 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 only a keyboard
• Listen to most of the website using a screen reader (including the most recent versions of JAWS, NVDA and VoiceOver)

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:

• Most pages and documents are not written in plain language.
• Many documents are in PDF format and are not fully accessible.
• Figures, graphics and images in documents may have missing or incorrect alternative text attributes.
• Some PDFs are not tagged.
• Some documents have a blank document title.
• Word documents may contain a non-inline graphic or objects.
• Some PDF and word documents are images of handwritten text of candidate evidence and cannot be read by assistive technologies.
• It is not always possible to change the device orientation from horizontal to vertical without making it more difficult to view the content.
• You cannot modify the line height or spacing of text.

Inaccessible documents

The Understanding Standards website includes documents that contain handwriting which cannot be read by assistive technologies. It is essential that handwritten candidate evidence is presented in the original format. Handwritten candidate evidence is considered “essential content” according to WCAG 2.2 – Success Criterion 1.4.5 (Images of Text)

Feedback and contact information

If you have problems accessing pages or documents published on this website, please contact the Understanding Standards team who will supply the page or document in an accessible format. Many of our publications can be produced in alternative formats, including digital copies, large type, braille and community languages.

If you find any problems not listed on this page or think we’re not meeting accessibility requirements, please contact:

• Submit your query using our contact form
• Email us at nqus@qualifications.gov.scot

We aim to provide a response to enquiries within five working days. If your enquiry is complex, we may need to refer it to another team; in these cases, we aim to provide a full response within 20 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, contact the Equality Advisory and Support Service (EASS).

Technical information about this website's accessibility

Qualifications Scotland 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

The website has been tested against the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2 AA standard.

This website is partially compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines version 2.2AA standard, due to the non-compliances and exemptions listed below.

Non-accessible content

The content listed below is non-accessible for the following reasons.

Non-compliance with the accessibility regulations

• Candidate evidence – Most candidate evidence documents contain PDF images of handwriting and/or graphics without a text alternative. Not all accessibility features have been included to ensure these documents preserve the conditions markers require. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 1.1.1 (Non-text Content). We provide alternative formats for candidates who require additional support.
• Documents using MathType may not be accessible to screen readers. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 1.1.1 (Non-text Content).
• Some PDFs are not tagged to be accessible by screen readers. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 1.3.1 (Info and Relationships).
• Some document titles are blank. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 2.4.2 (Page Titled).
• PDFs missing PDF/UA identifier. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 1.3.1 (Info and Relationships), 2.4.2 (Page Titled).
• Some pages cannot be found through more than one type of navigation. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 2.4.5 (Multiple Ways).
• Navigation is inconsistently named. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 3.2.4 (Consistent Identification).

Content that’s not within the scope of the accessibility regulations

PDFs and other documents

The accessibility regulations do not require fixes to PDFs or other documents published before 23 September 2018 if they are not essential to providing our services and do not form part of our day-to-day functions.

We do not plan to fix documents that were published before 2018 or have low use, unless asked by a user. Those documents that are essential to our service that were published before 2018 will be added to our roadmap.

We do not plan to fix documents containing handwritten evidence and markers commentaries as they are deemed “essential content” under WCAG 2.2 – Success Criterion 1.4.5 (Images of Text)

What we're doing to improve accessibility

We regularly audit and check content on www.understandingstandards.gov.scot and seek to fix content that fails to meet the WCAG version 2.2 AA standard. This work will include the replacement of the understandingstandards.org.uk website.

We have a project underway to improve accessibility across our digital estate. This will ensure our website is fully compliant with WCAG 2.2 AA Standard.

What we’re currently working on:

• Fixing PDFs and Word documents that are essential to providing our services (by April 2027).

What are we planning to do next:

• Accessibility user testing on the website.

Preparation of this accessibility statement

This statement was prepared on 01/10/2026. The statement was last reviewed on 01/10/2026. This website was last tested on 01/10/2026 against the WCAG 2.2 AA standard. This test included the use of our automated accessibility tool, Powermapper (SortSite) and manual testing by the understanding standards team