Does your school website pass the test?
School websites must comply with strict publication and accessibility requirements. Otherwise, the school can be guilty of breaching government legislation. Learn about school website requirements, including the latest new rules right here.
If you need a compliant school website, call the experts. WEBPRO Education is a website design agency that specialises in websites for schools, colleges and universities. Get in contact today!
Education website requirements
The Department of Education decides what must be published on a public school or college’s website. This information must be easily accessible on the education provider’s website to comply with legislation.
Any school not providing the required information could be in breach of the School Information Regulations 2012 and possibly the Equality Act 2012 and the Children and Families Act 2014. Therefore, it is paramount that any school with a website is keeping to the rules. The punishments for not providing the right information will be worse than a lunchtime detention.
What must a school website publish?
A school must provide a wide range of information on its website. In fact, the Department of Education lists over 20 different categories of information, which could then include sub-categories. Some examples of information that must be published include:
- Contact information
- Previous Ofsted reports
- Performance tables
- Financial information
- The Curriculum
The full and exhaustive list of what needs to be published can be found here.
NEW requirement for your school website
The list of information that must be accessible on a school website was last updated in February 2021. Building on a requirement for a Coronavirus information section earlier in the year, schools must now provide information on remote learning via their website.
The government has created a template to help schools add this section to their website. But our web designers are already on the case and can ensure this new requirement is ticked off with any new school website design service.
Website accessibility requirements
Websites owned by public sector groups also have to ensure their website is fully accessible to everyone. This means your website should be fully functional when used by people with visual or auditory disabilities.
There are many techniques and functions that can be added to a website to make sure it's accessible to everyone, such as making smart contrast choices and allowing users to increase text sizes. All of this, and more, is considered when working with WEBPRO Education.
Our school doesn’t have a website!
Your school is never forced to have a website of its own, but all of the information that needs to be published online still needs to be made accessible online. This means even if you don’t want to have a website, it’s still mandatory to make all this information available online using another website, such as a host website. Parents and students must then be given the URL to access this information.
All in all, most school leaders agree that it’s easier to have their own website. If you’ve never had a school website before and need one just to tick off the legislation requirements, our team can help. We can create a simple website that meets your obligations. Or we can develop a complex school website that ticks the boxes and does much more. Get in touch to find out how!
Recap: Unlike most other websites, a school website is obligated to publish a large amount of information. This requires a website design that can accommodate all of this information without sacrificing the quality of the website. It will also need a design and features that ensure all people can use the website easily. WEBPRO Education creates compliant websites so you always know you’re never breaching government legislation.
P.S. WEBPRO Education’s website developers can bring your school website up to scratch, even when you had it made by someone else.
