How to make video and audio accessible

Before you begin

Consider accessibility before creating video or audio-only content for our websites. 

On this page

Plan accessibility into your project

Videos or audio-only content can be a way to address a specific user need.

Videos can be either linked from or sometimes embedded in page content, like the HMRC video about their mobile app (GOV.UK).

Audio-only content includes recordings or podcasts, like the NottAlone podcast. 

First, check if you can address the problem or issue with words first. It’s quicker and easier to find information in text.

Video or audio content is:

  • expensive and slow to produce
  • harder to update, so becomes out-of-date and inaccurate quickly
  • slower to load than text on poor internet connections
  • data heavy, which affects mobile users
  • less searchable than text

If you create video or audio content, you must make it accessible so people can access the information in different ways.

Check which teams are responsible for making content accessible

If you work for the council and would like to discuss creating or using video or audio-only content on our websites, contact the communications team.

Explaining concepts or processes with videos

Start by explaining concepts or processes clearly and concisely for the general public in words first. It’s easier and quicker to find information in text.

Videos that explain concepts or processes often:

  • do not work for less visual concepts
  • are watched by a small proportion of users
  • duplicate written content, so they add to a user’s mental load
  • make it harder for users to scan for the information they need
  • often have calls-to-action that link users back to the page the video is on, which can be confusing

If it’s hard to explain clearly in words, it's a sign the concept or process itself may need simplifying.

Where we host videos 

We host videos for our website on the council’s YouTube channel. 

We've chosen this platform because we believe it is the most accessible video format for many of our users.

Videos on our YouTube channel can be set in three ways:

  • Public: These videos are open to the general public and visible by search engines or YouTube search. 
  • Unlisted: These videos do not appear in search results, but you can share these videos if you have the link - ideal for emailing videos or linking to videos from webpages.
  • Private: These videos are locked down and creators must manually share the video with each intended viewer (not recommended).

Find out how to add a video to our YouTube channel

Adding a video to web content

Videos must be reviewed by the communications team to ensure they meet our required production standards. 

Services should not try to add or embed videos on our web pages themselves.

This is because we must check:

  • the format is appropriate for the digital channel
  • videos have appropriate audio description, captions or transcripts added
  • videos embedded on our web pages have additional HTML code added to make them accessible

Marketing or campaign videos should generally be published on social media channels. You can then link users to the web page content the video talks about.