Accessibility statement
This accessibility statement applies to all digital RSPCA services.
Our mission is to make sure that all animals have a good life, by rescuing and caring for those in need, speaking on their behalf and inspiring everyone to treat them with compassion and respect.
As the RSPCA website is the main resource for animal welfare information and guidance, our aim is to provide an accessible service for all users (researchers, advice seekers, pet owners, wildlife friends, animal lovers, local communities and individuals of all ages, disabilities and preferences). The more accessible our site is for humans, the greater impact we can have for animals.
We design with accessibility as a fundamental pillar; we have a minimal font size suited for everyone, and a well-trained team that understands colour combinations and contrast.
Web Accessibility Standards and Conformance
We’re committed to ensuring we meet our moral and legal obligations under the Equality Act 2010; providing accessible and inclusive services to the populations of England and Wales.
We follow the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 Level AA guidelines, internationally recognised as the web accessibility standard. Our technologies are based on the standard social model of disability; an understanding that people are disabled by barriers in society, not by their impairment or condition. Often, those barriers are not just physical but neurological, which is why we tailor our site to accommodate both.
By doing what we can to remove those barriers, we’re creating a website that is a welcome space for all.
Testing and Development
To meet WCAG 2.1, we’ve introduced manual audits using the WCAG-EM (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines Evaluation Methodology) format. We regularly audit our web content to make improvements.
With our aim to accommodate everyone, we continuously talk to users to identify those not considered by WCAG guidelines. Our colour filter, for example, was designed to support neurodivergent users who found the brand colour too much. Our content is written to suit a recommended and universal reading age. We also have strict rules around motion usage, to stop/reduce motion before it's presented.
Accessibility Issues
We recognise the limitations of WCAG and aim to expand our knowledge and testing to include a wider range of users by creating a diverse user-testing group.
While we’re working hard to improve accessibility across our digital services, we know there are several outstanding issues, including:
Forms
We are aware of issues within our current forms and are working hard to find new solutions for these in the first quarter of 2026. We’ll begin updating these forms throughout 2026.
External Links
As an animal charity, we deal with scientific content and aim to be evidence-based in our decisions, therefore you may find external links to other organisations and resources across our site. These are chosen to provide additional material, guidance and advice from other reputable sites and experts, relevant to the animal query/topic.
As a result, we can’t always guarantee the content we link to is of the same standard of accessibility as us. The RSCPA is not responsible for the content of external websites, nor any accessibility issues these may present.
CRO
We also run CRO experiments, which are subject to accessibility limitations. While these tests only run for a limited time, any solutions then delivered undergo accessibility checks and approval before they are implemented.
PDF Documents
We understand that PDF documents can present accessibility challenges to users of assistive technology and are working to reduce our reliance on them. Meanwhile, please contact us for alternative versions.
Third-party functionality and services
On many of our site pages, we depend on third parties to deliver functionality and services that we can’t perform ourselves. Wherever possible, we work with third parties to ensure that the service they provide aligns with WCAG 2.1 Level AA – however, we can’t guarantee that they’ll always remain accessible, inclusive and usable in the same way as our site.
Using a digital assurance board with set procedures in place, we ensure the third parties we use as of 2025 have an accessibility statement, and work to similar standards as our own.
Our Objective/Commitment
We aim to become the most accessible animal charity in the UK. To do this, we will:
- Embed the principles of accessibility across our entire digital platform, making it as integral to the process as the design, content and function.
- Encourage and implement feedback from our users to find out how we can better our accessibility endeavours, as we have previously done.
- Ensure our updated brand and ambitions reflect our desire for across-the-board accessibility in all current and future projects.
- Establish a foundation for accessibility across the entire RSPCA charity, recognising that we must look beyond just digital accessibility and apply it to the wider brand.
Contact Information
If you find any accessibility issues across our digital services, listed on this page or otherwise, please tell us using our contact form here.
We’ll get back to you as soon as we can.