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Creating council documents: supplier guidelines

Use this guidance when you create public-facing documents for us.

Use this guidance when you create public-facing documents for us. It explains what you must do to meet our standards for accessibility, legal compliance and branding. 

What you must do 

If you create documents for us, you must: 

  • meet the Public Sector Bodies Accessibility Regulations 2018 and Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 at level AA 
  • write in plain English and define any acronyms when you first use them 
  • follow our brand guidelines, including logo use 
  • protect personal data under UK data protection law 
  • get written consent for images of people 
  • supply editable files, images and data when the web team asks 

If your document does not meet these rules, we will ask you to fix it before we accept it. 

Who this applies to 

This guidance applies to external suppliers who produce content for us. It covers public-facing documents such as strategies, reports, policies and guidance. 

Branding and visual identity 

Follow our brand guidelines. 

You must: 

  • use the council logo in the approved position and size 
  • keep clear space around the logo 
  • not change the logo or add effects 
  • not add partner logos without written permission 
  • use the approved colour palette and templates 

Accessibility requirements 

Make your content accessible to as many people as possible. 

You must: 

  • meet WCAG 2.2 AA 
  • use heading styles in order and not skip levels 
  • write meaningful page titles and section headings 
  • keep sentences and paragraphs short, aiming for 25 words or fewer per sentence 
  • use a sans serif font at 12 point and left align text 
  • avoid italics, all caps and underlining, except for links 
  • use good colour contrast and not rely on colour alone to show meaning 
  • add alternative text for images and charts that explains the purpose 
  • keep tables simple, add header rows and not merge cells 

If you produce a PDF, it must be accessible and pass an accessibility check. 

Equality and inclusion 

We have duties under the Equality Act 2010, including the Public Sector Equality Duty. 

You must: 

  • use inclusive, person-first language 
  • avoid stereotypes 
  • reflect the diversity of our community in images and examples 

Data protection and privacy 

Follow UK data protection law, including the UK General Data Protection Regulation and the Data Protection Act 2018. 

You must: 

  • anonymise case studies by removing names and other identifiers 
  • Make sure published documents do not retain comments or personal details in the file info 
  • If supplied personal data for the preparation of a document, keep this secure 
  • sign a data processing agreement if you process personal data for us 
  • report any suspected data breach to the commissioning officer at once 
  • Not use personal data being processed on behalf of the Council for any other purpose. 

Copyright and intellectual property 

Unless your contract says otherwise, we own the copyright in documents created for us. 

You must: 

  • get licences for any third-party content you use. Make sure this covers publishing the content on our website or in printed form  
  • record the source and licence for each image and graphic 
  • add attribution where a licence requires it 
  • not use copyrighted content without permission 

Media consent and photography 

Get written consent before using identifiable images or recordings of people. 

You must: 

  • explain how and where the image will be used and for how long 
  • get explicit written consent from the individual, or a parent or guardian for anyone under 18 
  • keep consent records and share them with us if we ask 

Safeguarding 

Take extra care with images of children and vulnerable adults. 

You must: 

  • not publish a child’s full name with their image 
  • avoid images that could reveal sensitive locations 
  • follow our safeguarding policies 

Writing and plain English 

Write for the target audience. Help users find what they need, understand it and act on it. 

You must: 

  • put the most important information first 
  • use active voice and everyday words 
  • define acronyms at first use and not use full stops in acronyms 
  • avoid jargon or idioms, and explain any technical terms 
  • write headings in sentence case 
  • use numerals for numbers, except one 
  • use meaningful link text and not use “click here” 
  • Use short URLs for links to the council site 
  • use bullet points with a clear lead-in line and start each item with lowercase 

Providing content for the website 

We aim to provide all online documents in HTML. The commissioning officer will tell you if the content needs to go on our website. 

When asked, provide: 

  • the final text in an editable format 
  • original image files with licence details 
  • data used in any tables or charts in an editable format 

Quality assurance and rejection 

We will check: 

  • accuracy and clarity 
  • accessibility against WCAG 2.2 AA 
  • style against GOV.UK guidance and our brand 
  • permissions, licences and consents 

We will reject documents that do not meet these requirements. We will tell you what to fix and ask you to resupply. 

Pre-submission checklist 

Confirm the following before you submit your document: 

  • spelling and grammar are correct 
  • facts and figures are accurate and sourced 
  • accessibility checks are complete and issues fixed 
  • brand guidelines are followed 
  • required consents and licences are in place 
  • document metadata, such as title and author, is set 

Contact 

If you have questions, contact the commissioning officer for your project.