On its own, EN 301 549 is a comprehensive and detailed technical standard. Therefore, for many organizations it may be easier if the technical standard itself is not the actual starting point for writing procurement language. Instead, this Toolkit was produced to help public procurement officials get started in using and implementing the European Standard. This Toolkit provides templates, samples, guidance, and other resources. The Toolkit was developed jointly by the agencies that produced the European Standard, namely the European Committee for Standardization (CEN), the European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardization.(CENELEC), and the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI).
The toolkit’s resources are divided up into the main stages of procurement (writing a call for tenders, evaluating tenders, evaluating deliverables, and managing contracts). For each stage, the toolkit provides information about how accessibility fits in to the process, and how the European Standard can and should be referenced. For newcomers, there is a 13 minute introductory video under the heading ‘How to use the Toolkit’.
This toolkit provides detailed information intended for use by procurement personnel. Introductory training videos, and a high-level roadmap for implementing the EU Standard can also be found this G3ict Accessible Procurement Portal. For those who are interested in the technical underpinnings on which much of the Toolkit content is based, we have also included a link to a foundational guide that was produced by the same authoring agencies (CEN/CLC/ETSI TR 101 551)
- Introduction to the EN 301 549
- Guide to Implementing Priority ICT Accessibility Standards: Critical Technical Specifications to Support Digital Inclusion
- Accessibility requirements suitable for public procurement of ICT products and services in Europe (EN 301 549)
- Guidelines on the use of accessibility award criteria suitable for public procurement of ICT products and services in Europe (CEN/CLC/ETSI TR 101 551)