Disproportionate burden for accessibility

If we have a specific accessibility issue that is particularly difficult or expensive to fix, and we believe that the benefit is not high enough to commit the resources to, then this is a disproportionate burden.

This should always be an exception, and the majority of our digital content should be fully accessible.

It will be easier to prove a disproportionate burden if it’s only a small part of our digital content

If we wish to claim a disproportionate burden then we must, by law, conduct an assessment.

This assessment must be:

• conducted objectively
• written down
• published on the Portsmouth City Council website
• linked to from your accessibility statement

There is no required format for a disproportionate burden assessment, but it must include:

• the benefits of making our content or service accessible
• the burden that making it accessible will have on the organisation, in terms of resources, time, or money

You need to consider this in the context of:

• the resources available to our organisation
• the nature of our organisation
• the cost of making something accessible, including how that relates to the total organisational budget
• the number of users who may potentially benefit
• the amount of difference the change would make

We must also document the steps that we will take to meet our duty to still provide accessible information as required. This could include steps such as how users can make a request for a different format, and how this will be fulfilled.

• New local plan evidence