Senior Accessibility Specialist

At Companies House, we have a well-established User-centred Design team within our Digital and Technology directorate, which includes a team of interaction designers, service designers, content designers, user researchers and performance analysts. Our services are critical for the UK economy, and as an organisation we are committed to making them as user friendly, inclusive and accessible as possible.


As a Senior Accessibility Specialist, you’ll be an expert accessibility practitioner, with demonstrable experience of advocating for users with access and assisted digital needs.


Your role will support us in complying with accessibility regulations and owning our accessibility design roadmap. By bringing together key stakeholders, you’ll ensure there is a common understanding of the legal requirements to meet accessibility requirements across both our digital and non-digital user journeys. You'll engage with wider technical and non-technical stakeholders to ensure our services meet the needs of all our users.


Inclusive and diverse teams are important to us. Wherever we can, we provide opportunities to work part-time, job-share or look for smarter ways of working. We'll support you to meet other commitments and help you find a better work-life balance. We’re keen to create an environment that works for everyone. For this opportunity, we may be able to consider slightly reduced or compressed hours, depending on workload and business needs (minimum of 30 hours per week).


We offer an excellent benefits package that includes a generous 30 days annual leave plus 8 bank holidays and 1 privilege day, and enrolment into the Civil Service Pension Scheme with a contribution rate averaging 28%.


Find out more about what a great place Companies House is to work


Job description


As a Senior Accessibility Specialist, you’ll be an expert practitioner and strong advocate who can champion the importance of accessibility across Companies House. You will ensure accessibility has been considered across our services, and make sure they meet the following accessibility regulations:

Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2 Level AA
Government Service Standard
Equality Act 2010
Public Sector Bodies (Website and Mobile Application) Accessibility Regulations


You’ll have a chance to support our mission to deliver exceptional public services that work for everyone.


At this role level, you will:

ensure Companies House services - both new and existing – adhere to and comply with accessibility regulations for Public Sector Bodies
develop and maintain a record of the current accessibility statuses of Companies House services
support the Head of User-Centred Design, the Head of Product Design and our Service Owners in the prioritisation of accessibility work
act as a digital accessibility expert, providing consultancy to technical and non-technical colleagues to integrate accessibility into the lifecycle of a service
work with service teams to review accessibility audits, providing expertise guidance where necessary
represent the community of users with access needs
work with teams across the organisation to identify and fix accessibility issues (during all stages of the development cycle), providing solutions and support
provide relevant training, advice and support to key technical professions, including service/interaction/content designers, user researchers, developers and testers
provide expert advice and guidance to IT and Commercial colleagues on the procurement of accessible internal systems and services
create and maintain an accessibility community within Companies House
explore opportunities for partnerships and networking to increase our user base for accessibility testing
contribute to the cross-government accessibility community


Person specification

We're looking for the following skills and experience, which will be assessed at sift and at interview. Please refer to 5 bullet points below when writing your personal statement.


Skills needed for this role level

ability to advocate and secure buy-in from senior stakeholders, and influence how accessibility is prioritised in our transformation roadmap
experience of working with service owners, user researchers, interaction designers, content designers, service designers, developers and testers to successfully implement accessibility changes
in-depth knowledge of accessibility legislation, assistive technology and best practices
ability to communicate complex technical concepts to non-technical colleagues.
ability to conduct in-house accessibility audits of both internal and external services, as well as review service teams’ actions, working methods and plans.


Benefits

We offer an excellent benefits package that includes:


a generous 30 days annual leave plus 8 bank holidays and 1 privilege day
enrolment into the Civil Service Pension Scheme with a contribution rate of averaging 28%
a range of recognition schemes including instant awards to thank and recognise each other's efforts and contributions
strong ethos of equality, diversity and inclusion
great work life balance with flexible and mobile working available for many roles
a pro-active approach to employee wellbeing that allows our employees to flourish and be their best at work and has enabled us to become an Investors In People platinum accredited employer
online financial support and advice
seasonal flu jabs
generous maternity, paternity, adoption and shared parental leave allowances
a focus on career development and progression
a number of inclusive network groups to support our colleagues and a great sports and social society
cycle to work scheme
staff discount scheme
holiday play scheme for children
3 days paid volunteering leave


Next Steps


Click 'Apply Now' to be taken to our main advert Civil Service Jobs where you can see more details regarding the role, the incredible benefits we have to offer and what it's like to work in Companies House.


If you have any questions about the role or process, please reach out to kjones6@companieshouse.gov.uk.


This role closes on 26 August 2024