Website accessibility

Historic Environment Scotland (HES) is committed to making its digital estate accessible, in accordance with the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018 (the Regulations).

This accessibility statement applies to Historic Environment Scotland’s website available at https://www.historicenvironment.scot/

Compliance status

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

Non‑accessible content

The content listed below is non‑accessible for the following reasons:

Headings

Although rare, some pages on the website have some issues with hierarchy or ordering of headings or occasionally skip a heading level. In addition, there are some page‑specific cases where headings that appear visually subordinate are marked up at the same level as primary headings.

This means that the content structure is not always logical for assistive technology users, particularly those who rely on heading navigation.

We regularly scan the website for this type of authoring error and fix these issues upon detection. Where the errors are programmatical, we raise them with our developers to be addressed in future development cycles.

These issues relate to:

• WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 1.3.1 Info and Relationships

• WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 1.3.2 Meaningful Sequence

Search suggestions and status messages

When typing into the search field, suggested search options appear visually. However, screen reader users may not be informed when these suggestions appear or that they can navigate and select from them.

In addition, in some situations where content updates dynamically following user interaction, changes are not consistently announced to screen reader users. This means some users may be unaware that an action has completed or that new content is available.

These issues relate to:

• WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 4.1.3 Status Messages

• WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 1.3.1 Info and Relationships

Forms

Some form input fields do not have clear programmatic labels, making it difficult for screen reader users to understand the purpose of the fields when navigating the form.

In some cases, form errors are also not clearly communicated in text to screen reader users. This means users may not be aware that an error has occurred or what action is required to resolve it.

These issues relate to:

• WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 1.3.1 Info and Relationships

• WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 4.1.2 Name, Role, Value

• WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 3.3.1 Error Identification

Colours

The colours on the website have been chosen to meet contrast thresholds. However, on occasion we have found examples of content that does not meet the required contrast ratio. This may make text harder to read for users with low vision or colour‑vision deficiency.

Where these are programmatical errors, we log them with our website developers for change.

This issue relates to:

• WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 1.4.3 Contrast (Minimum)

Embedded third‑party content

Some third‑party embedded content (such as interactive media and review components) is presented within frames that do not clearly describe their purpose to screen reader users. This means users may not be informed about the content or function of the embedded component.

This issue relates to:

• WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 4.1.2 Name, Role, Value

We are not claiming that any of our accessibility issues are disproportionate to fix.

PDFs and other documents

Some of our older office file format documents (Word, Excel, PowerPoint and PDFs) were published before 23 September 2018 and are not used for administrative or essential purposes. Due to their age and non‑essential status, they are exempt under Regulation 4(2)(a) of the Regulations.

Any new PDFs or Word documents we publish will meet accessibility standards.

Pre‑recorded video (created before 23 September 2020)

Videos created before 23 September 2020 may not have complete or accurate captions, audio descriptions or transcripts. These videos are exempt under Regulation 4(2)(b) of the Regulations.

Live time‑based media

In rare cases, we may broadcast or stream live media. This content may not meet certain WCAG 2.2 criteria due to the lack of captions or other alternatives. This content is exempt under Regulation 4(2)(c) of the Regulations.

Non‑navigational online maps and mapping services

Maps on this website are not fully accessible but are not used for navigational purposes. They are therefore exempt under Regulation 4(2)(d) of the Regulations.

Third‑party content and technologies

Some content and technologies used on this website are provided by third‑party suppliers (for example YouTube or social media platforms). We do not control these services and are not responsible for their accessibility compliance under Regulation 4(2)(e) of the Regulations.

Heritage collections

Heritage collections delivered by this website fall under the Regulations’ definition of a heritage collection and are exempt under Regulation 4(2)(f).

The HES website and its associated subdomains were tested using the Government’s Simplified Audit method. Further scans were carried out using automated monitoring tools.

Testing focused on common templates, replicated components, and the most visited pages and user journeys.

Our website team use monitoring tools to identify content, design and technical accessibility issues. Where possible, issues are fixed when discovered. Issues that require development changes are logged and addressed through future development cycles.

HES staff also take part in training and awareness activities to improve the accessibility of content created for external and internal use.

If you need information on this website in a different format, such as accessible PDF, large print, easy read, audio recording or braille, please contact us:

Email: digital@hes.scot

Phone: 0131 668 8600

We will consider your request and aim to respond within 10 working days.

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

Email: digital@hes.scot

Phone: 0131 668 8600

This statement was prepared on 26 May 2026. It will be reviewed annually.

The website was initially tested by the Digital Accessibility Centre in May 2026 and has since undergone further rounds of accessibility testing. The issues listed above reflect the findings of the most recent testing.

The Equality and Human Rights Commission is responsible for enforcing the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018.

If you’re not happy with how we respond to your complaint, you can contact the Equality Advisory and Support Service (EASS).