Our responsibilities
Overview
It's our responsibility to make sure our digital products and services are usable by all people. We are legally required to provide everyone with equal access to our products and services.
As a minimum, products must conform to the relevant accessibility requirements within the current version of Australian Standard on accessibility requirements for ICT products and services (AS EN 301549). This standard embeds the World Wide Web Consortium’s (W3C) Accessibility Standards and in particular the W3C’s Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG).
In NSW, digital products and services should meet the relevant requirements of AS EN 301 549 and Government websites and web content should meet the current WCAG standard at Level AA.
Our responsibilities
All NSW Government departments, agencies and organisations are responsible for affording customers with equal access of use of the information and services we provide.
- Accessibility is a right under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (Article 1-Purpose, Article 3-General Principles and Article 9 - Accessibility). Accessibility is an enabling right that is critical to the enjoyment of a range of other civil, political, economic, social, and cultural rights
- Accessibility is required by law under the Commonwealth Disability Discrimination Act 1992 and the NSW Disability Inclusion Act 2014
- Accessibility is a standard under the Australian Standard on accessibility requirements for ICT products and services (AS EN 301 549) and under the NSW Design Standards Make it for everyone
- Accessibility is integral to achieving our strategic priorities, including the Premier’s Priority for a world-class public service and the Beyond Digital vision to put the customer at the centre
Adhering to these obligations ensures customers with a disability are given the same opportunities of use as other customers.
Digital products must be accessible
NSW Government buys, builds and manages a range of different digital and ICT products and services, both for customers and staff. Our equal access obligations are met when our products are 'functionally accessible' - both accessible and usable.
If people interact with, engage with or control your product or service, it must be designed to provide equal access of use.
Digital products include:
- internet-based technologies, non-internet technologies and hybrids that use both
- content, systems, services and applications.
In practical terms, this includes ICT such as:
- websites including intranets, digital documents, books, and learning materials
- emails and attachments to emails
- Software as a Service (SaaS) including office productivity suites, online or remote meetings, digital libraries, streaming services, video and music authoring
- social media platforms, content and communications
- Platform as a service (PaaS) which are cloud-based services where a third-party provider delivers hardware and software tools to users over the internet.
- software and mobile applications
- gaming and online gaming
- artificial intelligence (Al)
- virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR)
- facial recognition and other biometric technologies
- digital wallets and payment systems including automated banking machines
- digital wayfinding including mapping
- control interfaces of digital devices including digital kiosks, office printers
Contact us
Have questions or need assistance or information? Please reach out to the Accessibility NSW team at digital.accessibilitv@customerservice.nsw.gov.au