Cookies page
Standard content and layout for the cookies page on a DWP service
This template includes the standard content and layout for the cookies page on a DWP service. The cookies page is part of the GOV.UK Cookies page pattern, which also includes a cookie banner and detailed guidance on implementation.
Use this template on any DWP service that needs consent to set cookies. This usually means any service that is not used solely by DWP staff. Consult a Performance Analyst if you are not sure whether your service needs cookie consent.
Principles
Users must be able to:
- understand how your service uses cookies and which cookies it uses
- easily find and change their consent preferences at any time
Writing your cookies page
Follow the steps in the GOV.UK Design System Cookies page pattern. Before you can write your cookies page you will need to audit and categorise the cookies used on your service.
When you come to the section 'Writing your cookies page', use the examples given here as a template. There are two versions of the sample text:
- for services that only use Google Analytics cookies
- for services that also use other optional cookies
Standard text
The introductory text explaining cookies is approved for use across DWP so do not change it or add to it unnecessarily.
Google Analytics cookies
Use the following standard names and descriptions for Google Analytics cookies:
| Name | Purpose | Expires |
|---|---|---|
| _ga | Checks if you have visited before so we can count how many people use the service. | 2 years |
| _ga_<container-id> | Collects information about how you use the service so we can make it better. | 2 years |
Text you will need to change
You will need to:
- replace [service name] with the name of your own service
- change the categories to match those used in your service (identified in your cookie audit)
- write your own description of what each cookie does
Write the cookie descriptions in plain English so that a non-technical user can understand them. For the cookie duration, use the units that are easiest to understand for each cookie: for example, write ‘20 hours’ instead of ‘1200 minutes’.
Services with other optional cookies
If your service has more than one category of optional cookie (not just analytics cookies), users should be able to accept or reject each category individually. This example shows how to organise multiple optional cookie categories.
Linking to the cookies page
Include a link to the cookies page in the footer of your service using the link text 'Cookies'.
Technical guidance
Preselect radio buttons
Radios should be preselected with the 'Reject' option when a user visits this page for the first time.
This is different from the guidance for radio buttons on question pages. There is an issue in the GOV.UK Design System backlog discussing when preselecting radios can be useful.
Enable cookies without a page refresh
Cookies should be enabled without a page refresh after a user has accepted them. Enabling Google Analytics and Google Tag Manager cookies with a page refresh will mean referral traffic will be converted to direct traffic.
Remove existing cookies if consent changes
If the user accepts cookies but then updates their settings to reject them, any cookies already placed on the user’s device must be removed.
Cookie banner and JavaScript
The GOV.UK Cookie banner component explains what to do if JavaScript is not available. Most DWP services should follow the guidance in Option 3: If you set non-essential cookies, but only on the client.
Accessibility
There are concerns that some users of voice assist software will not be able to interact with the details component used on this page. In this case users might need to refer to the link as a button in order to interact with it.
The Cookies page is part of a wider set of elements including the Cookie banner component which together make up your service's consent mechanism. Make sure that you consider all the elements of this journey in your accessibility audit.
For more about building accessible services see the DWP Accessibility Manual.
Design history
A previous DWP pattern had separate policy and details pages, which meant that:
- it was difficult to use the standard GOV.UK cookie banner without making changes
- users were asked for a generic consent before they had seen details of what they were consenting to
- once they had viewed the details of the individual cookies, they needed to go to a different page to change their preference
Having the consent mechanism and the cookie details on the same page addresses these issues, but there is a risk of the consent mechanism going unnoticed at the bottom of a long page.
To mitigate this our template uses details components to make better use of vertical space, but it is still possible that some users will not find the 'Save cookie settings' button or understand the function of the page. We are interested in any research that relates to this issue.
Discuss on GitHub
There is a public discussion for this topic on GitHub where you can share anything you think might be useful. Discuss Cookies page on GitHub.
Could we improve this page?
Send questions, comments or suggestions to the DWP Design System team.
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