3.8 Status and link could have better programmatic association (Observation)

3.8.1 Status and link could have better programmatic association

On the Your Reports page, the heading link “2024 to 2025 report” is visually grouped with a status tag (“Not started”) and a “Start now” link. However, there is no programmatic association between these elements, which means screen reader users do not receive the full context when navigating through the page.

Currently, “Not started” and “Start now” are announced independently of the report title, so users may not realise which report these relate to. This reduces clarity, particularly for users relying on assistive technologies to navigate and understand grouped content.

FIGURE 3.13: Status tag and link on Your Reports page

3.8.2 Code Snippet

<div class="opg-card behat-region-report-active">
    <span>Not started</span>
    <h3 class="govuk-heading-m flush--ends">
        <a href="/report/187/overview">
            2024 to 2025 report
        </a>
    </h3>
    ...
    <div class="opg-card__actions">
        <a href="/report/187/overview">Start now</a>
    </div>
</div>

3.8.3 Recommendation

We suggest using aria-describedby to programmatically associate the status tag and action link with the report heading, without overriding the link’s accessible name. This provides additional context to screen reader users without affecting what is visually displayed.

<div class="opg-card behat-region-report-active">
    <span id="report-status-187">Not started</span>
    <h3>
        <a href="/.../overview" aria-describedby="report-status-187">
            2024 to 2025 report
        </a>
    </h3>
    ...
    <div class="opg-card__actions">
        <a href="/report/187/overview"
 aria-describedby="report-status-187">
            Start now
        </a>
    </div>
</div>

3.8.4 Spot Check: February 2026

This issue has not been addressed. The report title, status tag, and associated action link remain visually grouped but are not programmatically associated.

Consider making changes in line with the original recommendation to programmatically associate the status and action link with the report heading, so that screen reader users receive the full context of the grouped content.

This issue remains an ‘Observation’.

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