Building an Accessible Multi-Page Form System for Citizens Advice
We developed a fully accessible, multi-page form system for Citizens Advice using Ruby on Rails and a custom gem—designed to meet strict accessibility standards, operate without JavaScript, and handle sensitive data for critical government services.
Overview
Citizens Advice asked us to help them build a fully accessible, multi-page form system to support some of their most sensitive user workflows. Known for their commitment to inclusivity and accessibility, Citizens Advice required a solution that could work flawlessly without JavaScript and meet WCAG standards—ensuring usability across all devices and assistive technologies.
To enable reuse across multiple projects, we delivered the solution as a custom Ruby on Rails gem. The system was also built with security and privacy in mind, as it would be used to collect potentially sensitive information for services such as the UK government’s witness protection program.
The Challenge
Citizens Advice has one of the highest accessibility standards in the UK’s public service sector. They needed a dynamic, multi-step form platform that would work entirely without JavaScript—while still maintaining usability, data integrity, and flexibility for future projects.
The forms had to be easy to integrate, secure by design, and suitable for collecting deeply sensitive information.
Our Solution
We designed and implemented a Rails-based form engine delivered as a custom gem, making it easy to reuse and adapt across different services and teams. The form system allowed conditional flows, seamless multi-page navigation, and robust session-based caching—all without relying on client-side JavaScript.
Key features included:
- Fully accessible multi-page form logic
- No JavaScript dependency—100% server-rendered
- Customizable form components and flows
- Session-based data caching for draft-saving and recovery
- Privacy-aware design suitable for high-sensitivity use cases
- Delivered as a reusable Rails gem for other projects
We collaborated closely with their team to ensure accessibility audits were passed, integration was simple, and the system could be extended without introducing technical debt.
Results
Citizens Advice now has a highly accessible, privacy-compliant multi-page form system that meets the needs of its users—especially those relying on assistive technologies or limited devices. The gem is now being reused across multiple internal and governmental projects, giving the organization a consistent, maintainable tool for securely collecting critical information.
