Perth Website Accessibility Checklist - City Bylaws

Civil Rights and Equity Western Australia 3 Minutes Read · published February 11, 2026 Flag of Western Australia

Introduction

Perth, Western Australia requires public-facing services to be accessible; website accessibility reduces legal risk and improves service for residents with disability. This checklist explains how local obligations, the Disability Discrimination Act pathway and council access planning intersect for websites, and gives clear steps for local businesses and council teams to audit, fix and maintain accessible digital content.

Essential requirements for Perth websites

Use the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 AA as a practical baseline for site design, text alternatives, keyboard access, captions and semantic structure. Start with an audit, prioritise critical user journeys (payments, forms, complaints) and publish an accessibility statement with contact and feedback channels.

  • Publish an accessibility statement and feedback process for users.
  • Run automated and manual WCAG 2.1 AA testing and user testing with people with disability.
  • Schedule regular reviews and updates tied to content changes and platform releases.
  • Ensure online forms meet accessible labelling and error-handling standards.
Make the accessibility statement easy to find from every page.

Penalties & Enforcement

For discrimination or service access complaints under the Disability Discrimination Act, affected users may complain to the Australian Human Rights Commission or pursue court action; specific monetary fines for a local council or private website are not set on the federal guidance page cited here [1]. For City of Perth DAIP and local access planning, councils implement inclusion plans and service adjustments but the public enforcement and penalty amounts for websites are not specified on the federal guidance page cited here [1].

  • Fines: not specified on the cited page [1].
  • Escalation: not specified on the cited page; complaints typically begin with conciliation or administrative pathways [1].
  • Non-monetary outcomes: conciliation agreements, court orders, requirements to make services accessible, and damages where a court orders them.
  • Enforcers: Australian Human Rights Commission for DDA complaints and the civil courts; local council compliance units oversee DAIP implementation (contact council for local procedures).
  • Complaint pathway: lodge a complaint with the AHRC or contact your local council’s customer service for assistance and local DAIP contacts [1].
If a user threatens legal action, begin internal remediation and contact legal counsel promptly.

Applications & Forms

There is generally no separate national form required to make a website accessible; for discrimination complaints the AHRC provides complaint guidance and submission routes, and councils publish DAIP contact points or feedback forms on their sites [1].

Common violations and typical outcomes

  • Missing alt text and non-descriptive links - may lead to conciliation requests and required fixes.
  • Poor keyboard navigation and inaccessible forms - often fixed by development updates and accessibility remediation.
  • Multimedia without captions or transcripts - can trigger ordered remediation or negotiated settlements.
Document remediation work and keep records of testing and user feedback.

Action steps for compliance

  • Run an initial automated WCAG scan and record results.
  • Conduct manual testing for keyboard and screen reader use.
  • Prioritise fixes for transactional pages (login, payment, reporting forms).
  • Publish an accessibility statement with contact details and a remediation timeline.

FAQ

Do Perth bylaws require websites to meet WCAG?
The City of Perth expects services to be accessible through its DAIP processes and general service obligations, and discrimination complaints may be made under the Disability Discrimination Act; specific bylaw text requiring WCAG is not published here.
Who do I contact to report an inaccessible council web service?
Contact the City of Perth customer or by-law compliance team through the council contact page and consider lodging a DDA complaint with the Australian Human Rights Commission [1].
Are there fast-track fixes I can apply now?
Yes: add meaningful alt text, ensure all interactive controls are keyboard-accessible, label form fields, provide captions for video and an accessibility statement with a feedback channel.

How-To

  1. Run an automated audit (choose a WCAG 2.1 AA tool) and export the report.
  2. Perform manual keyboard and screen reader checks on primary workflows.
  3. Fix high-impact issues (forms, navigation, labels) and re-test.
  4. Publish an accessibility statement describing standards, limitations and feedback contact.
  5. Schedule quarterly reviews and record remediation progress in a log.

Key Takeaways

  • Use WCAG 2.1 AA as a practical baseline for Perth services.
  • Document testing and remediation to reduce legal risk.
  • Provide clear feedback channels and respond promptly to accessibility reports.

Help and Support / Resources

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