Components

Textarea

Use the textarea component when you need to let users enter an amount of text that’s longer than a single line.

What is the event about?

This will be shown on the public page for the event, below the event title

HTML
Nunjucks

<div class="govuk-form-group">
  <h1 class="govuk-label-wrapper">
    <label class="govuk-label govuk-label--l" for="event-description">
      What is the event about?
    </label>
  </h1>
  <div id="event-description-hint" class="govuk-hint">
    This will be shown on the public page for the event, below the event title
  </div>
  <textarea
    class="govuk-textarea"
    id="event-description"
    name="event-description"
    rows="5"
    aria-describedby="event-description-hint"
  ></textarea>
</div>

Nunjucks

Nunjucks macro options

Use options to customise the appearance, content and behaviour of a component when using a macro, for example, changing the text.

Some options are required for the macro to work; these are marked as "Required" in the option description.

If you’re using Nunjucks macros in production with "html" options, or ones ending with "html", you must sanitise the HTML to protect against cross-site scripting exploits.

Primary options
Name	Type	Description
id	string	Required. The ID of the textarea.
name	string	Required. The name of the textarea, which is submitted with the form data.
spellcheck	boolean	Optional field to enable or disable the `spellcheck` attribute on the textarea.
rows	string	Optional number of textarea rows (default is 5 rows).
value	string	Optional initial value of the textarea.
disabled	boolean	If `true`, textarea will be disabled.
describedBy	string	One or more element IDs to add to the `aria-describedby` attribute, used to provide additional descriptive information for screenreader users.
label	object	Required. The label used by the textarea component. See label.
hint	object	Can be used to add a hint to the textarea component. See hint.
errorMessage	object	Can be used to add an error message to the textarea component. The error message component will not display if you use a falsy value for `errorMessage`, for example `false` or `null`. See error message.
formGroup	object	Additional options for the form group containing the textarea component. See formGroup.
classes	string	Classes to add to the textarea.
autocomplete	string	Attribute to identify input purpose, for example `"street-address"`. See autofill for full list of attributes that can be used.
attributes	object	HTML attributes (for example data attributes) to add to the textarea.

Options for formGroup
Name	Type	Description
classes	string	Classes to add to the form group (for example to show error state for the whole group).
attributes	object	HTML attributes (for example data attributes) to add to the form group.
beforeInput	object	Content to add before the textarea used by the textarea component. See beforeInput.
afterInput	object	Content to add after the textarea used by the textarea component. See afterInput.

Options for afterInput
Name	Type	Description
text	string	Required. Text to add after the textarea. If `html` is provided, the `text` option will be ignored.
html	string	Required. HTML to add after the textarea. If `html` is provided, the `text` option will be ignored.

Options for beforeInput
Name	Type	Description
text	string	Required. Text to add before the textarea. If `html` is provided, the `text` option will be ignored.
html	string	Required. HTML to add before the textarea. If `html` is provided, the `text` option will be ignored.

Options for hint
Name	Type	Description
text	string	Required. If `html` is set, this is not required. Text to use within the hint. If `html` is provided, the `text` option will be ignored.
html	string	Required. If `text` is set, this is not required. HTML to use within the hint. If `html` is provided, the `text` option will be ignored.
id	string	Optional ID attribute to add to the hint span tag.
classes	string	Classes to add to the hint span tag.
attributes	object	HTML attributes (for example data attributes) to add to the hint span tag.

Options for label
Name	Type	Description
text	string	Required. If `html` is set, this is not required. Text to use within the label. If `html` is provided, the `text` option will be ignored.
html	string	Required. If `text` is set, this is not required. HTML to use within the label. If `html` is provided, the `text` option will be ignored.
for	string	The value of the `for` attribute, the ID of the input the label is associated with.
isPageHeading	boolean	Whether the label also acts as the heading for the page.
classes	string	Classes to add to the label tag.
attributes	object	HTML attributes (for example data attributes) to add to the label tag.

{% from "moduk/components/textarea/macro.njk" import modukTextarea -%}

{{ modukTextarea({
  name: "event-description",
  id: "event-description",
  label: {
    text: "What is the event about?",
    classes: "govuk-label--l",
    isPageHeading: true
  },
  hint: {
    text: "This will be shown on the public page for the event, below the event title"
  }
}) -}}

See GOV.UK textarea component guidance for:

when to use this component
when not to use it

How it works

See GOV.UK textarea component guidance for detail on how this component works.

If you’re asking one question on the page

If you’re asking just one question per page as recommended, you can set the contents of the <label> as the page heading. This is good practice as it means that users of screen readers will only hear the contents once.

What is the event about?

This will be shown on the public page for the event, below the event title

HTML
Nunjucks

HTML

<div class="govuk-form-group">
  <h1 class="govuk-label-wrapper">
    <label
      class="govuk-label govuk-label--l"
      for="event-description-with-page-heading"
    >
      What is the event about?
    </label>
  </h1>
  <div id="event-description-with-page-heading-hint" class="govuk-hint">
    This will be shown on the public page for the event, below the event title
  </div>
  <textarea
    class="govuk-textarea"
    id="event-description-with-page-heading"
    name="event-description-with-page-heading"
    rows="5"
    aria-describedby="event-description-with-page-heading-hint"
  ></textarea>
</div>

Nunjucks

Nunjucks macro options

Use options to customise the appearance, content and behaviour of a component when using a macro, for example, changing the text.

Some options are required for the macro to work; these are marked as "Required" in the option description.

If you’re using Nunjucks macros in production with "html" options, or ones ending with "html", you must sanitise the HTML to protect against cross-site scripting exploits.

Primary options
Name	Type	Description
id	string	Required. The ID of the textarea.
name	string	Required. The name of the textarea, which is submitted with the form data.
spellcheck	boolean	Optional field to enable or disable the `spellcheck` attribute on the textarea.
rows	string	Optional number of textarea rows (default is 5 rows).
value	string	Optional initial value of the textarea.
disabled	boolean	If `true`, textarea will be disabled.
describedBy	string	One or more element IDs to add to the `aria-describedby` attribute, used to provide additional descriptive information for screenreader users.
label	object	Required. The label used by the textarea component. See label.
hint	object	Can be used to add a hint to the textarea component. See hint.
errorMessage	object	Can be used to add an error message to the textarea component. The error message component will not display if you use a falsy value for `errorMessage`, for example `false` or `null`. See error message.
formGroup	object	Additional options for the form group containing the textarea component. See formGroup.
classes	string	Classes to add to the textarea.
autocomplete	string	Attribute to identify input purpose, for example `"street-address"`. See autofill for full list of attributes that can be used.
attributes	object	HTML attributes (for example data attributes) to add to the textarea.

Options for formGroup
Name	Type	Description
classes	string	Classes to add to the form group (for example to show error state for the whole group).
attributes	object	HTML attributes (for example data attributes) to add to the form group.
beforeInput	object	Content to add before the textarea used by the textarea component. See beforeInput.
afterInput	object	Content to add after the textarea used by the textarea component. See afterInput.

Options for afterInput
Name	Type	Description
text	string	Required. Text to add after the textarea. If `html` is provided, the `text` option will be ignored.
html	string	Required. HTML to add after the textarea. If `html` is provided, the `text` option will be ignored.

Options for beforeInput
Name	Type	Description
text	string	Required. Text to add before the textarea. If `html` is provided, the `text` option will be ignored.
html	string	Required. HTML to add before the textarea. If `html` is provided, the `text` option will be ignored.

Options for hint
Name	Type	Description
text	string	Required. If `html` is set, this is not required. Text to use within the hint. If `html` is provided, the `text` option will be ignored.
html	string	Required. If `text` is set, this is not required. HTML to use within the hint. If `html` is provided, the `text` option will be ignored.
id	string	Optional ID attribute to add to the hint span tag.
classes	string	Classes to add to the hint span tag.
attributes	object	HTML attributes (for example data attributes) to add to the hint span tag.

Options for label
Name	Type	Description
text	string	Required. If `html` is set, this is not required. Text to use within the label. If `html` is provided, the `text` option will be ignored.
html	string	Required. If `text` is set, this is not required. HTML to use within the label. If `html` is provided, the `text` option will be ignored.
for	string	The value of the `for` attribute, the ID of the input the label is associated with.
isPageHeading	boolean	Whether the label also acts as the heading for the page.
classes	string	Classes to add to the label tag.
attributes	object	HTML attributes (for example data attributes) to add to the label tag.

{% from "moduk/components/textarea/macro.njk" import modukTextarea %}

{{ modukTextarea({
  name: "event-description-with-page-heading",
  id: "event-description-with-page-heading",
  label: {
    text: "What is the event about?",
    classes: "govuk-label--l",
    isPageHeading: true
  },
  hint: {
    text: "This will be shown on the public page for the event, below the event title"
  }
}) }}

If you’re asking more than one question on the page

If you’re asking more than one question on the page, do not set the contents of the <label> as the page heading.

What is the event about?

HTML
Nunjucks

HTML

<div class="govuk-form-group">
  <label class="govuk-label" for="event-description-not-as-page-heading">
    What is the event about?
  </label>
  <textarea
    class="govuk-textarea"
    id="event-description-not-as-page-heading"
    name="event-description-not-as-page-heading"
    rows="5"
  ></textarea>
</div>

Nunjucks

Nunjucks macro options

Use options to customise the appearance, content and behaviour of a component when using a macro, for example, changing the text.

Some options are required for the macro to work; these are marked as "Required" in the option description.

If you’re using Nunjucks macros in production with "html" options, or ones ending with "html", you must sanitise the HTML to protect against cross-site scripting exploits.

Primary options
Name	Type	Description
id	string	Required. The ID of the textarea.
name	string	Required. The name of the textarea, which is submitted with the form data.
spellcheck	boolean	Optional field to enable or disable the `spellcheck` attribute on the textarea.
rows	string	Optional number of textarea rows (default is 5 rows).
value	string	Optional initial value of the textarea.
disabled	boolean	If `true`, textarea will be disabled.
describedBy	string	One or more element IDs to add to the `aria-describedby` attribute, used to provide additional descriptive information for screenreader users.
label	object	Required. The label used by the textarea component. See label.
hint	object	Can be used to add a hint to the textarea component. See hint.
errorMessage	object	Can be used to add an error message to the textarea component. The error message component will not display if you use a falsy value for `errorMessage`, for example `false` or `null`. See error message.
formGroup	object	Additional options for the form group containing the textarea component. See formGroup.
classes	string	Classes to add to the textarea.
autocomplete	string	Attribute to identify input purpose, for example `"street-address"`. See autofill for full list of attributes that can be used.
attributes	object	HTML attributes (for example data attributes) to add to the textarea.

Options for formGroup
Name	Type	Description
classes	string	Classes to add to the form group (for example to show error state for the whole group).
attributes	object	HTML attributes (for example data attributes) to add to the form group.
beforeInput	object	Content to add before the textarea used by the textarea component. See beforeInput.
afterInput	object	Content to add after the textarea used by the textarea component. See afterInput.

Options for afterInput
Name	Type	Description
text	string	Required. Text to add after the textarea. If `html` is provided, the `text` option will be ignored.
html	string	Required. HTML to add after the textarea. If `html` is provided, the `text` option will be ignored.

Options for beforeInput
Name	Type	Description
text	string	Required. Text to add before the textarea. If `html` is provided, the `text` option will be ignored.
html	string	Required. HTML to add before the textarea. If `html` is provided, the `text` option will be ignored.

Options for hint
Name	Type	Description
text	string	Required. If `html` is set, this is not required. Text to use within the hint. If `html` is provided, the `text` option will be ignored.
html	string	Required. If `text` is set, this is not required. HTML to use within the hint. If `html` is provided, the `text` option will be ignored.
id	string	Optional ID attribute to add to the hint span tag.
classes	string	Classes to add to the hint span tag.
attributes	object	HTML attributes (for example data attributes) to add to the hint span tag.

Options for label
Name	Type	Description
text	string	Required. If `html` is set, this is not required. Text to use within the label. If `html` is provided, the `text` option will be ignored.
html	string	Required. If `text` is set, this is not required. HTML to use within the label. If `html` is provided, the `text` option will be ignored.
for	string	The value of the `for` attribute, the ID of the input the label is associated with.
isPageHeading	boolean	Whether the label also acts as the heading for the page.
classes	string	Classes to add to the label tag.
attributes	object	HTML attributes (for example data attributes) to add to the label tag.

{% from "moduk/components/textarea/macro.njk" import modukTextarea -%}

{{ modukTextarea({
  name: "event-description-not-as-page-heading",
  id: "event-description-not-as-page-heading",
  label: {
    text: "What is the event about?"
  }
}) -}}

Error messages

Error messages should be styled like this:

What is the event about?

This will be shown on the public page for the event, below the event title

Error: Enter some details about the event

HTML
Nunjucks

HTML

<div class="govuk-form-group govuk-form-group--error">
  <h1 class="govuk-label-wrapper">
    <label
      class="govuk-label govuk-label--l"
      for="event-description-with-error"
    >
      What is the event about?
    </label>
  </h1>
  <div id="event-description-with-error-hint" class="govuk-hint">
    This will be shown on the public page for the event, below the event title
  </div>
  <p id="event-description-with-error-error" class="govuk-error-message">
    <span class="govuk-visually-hidden">Error:</span> Enter some details about
    the event
  </p>
  <textarea
    class="govuk-textarea govuk-textarea--error"
    id="event-description-with-error"
    name="event-description-with-error"
    rows="5"
    aria-describedby="event-description-with-error-hint event-description-with-error-error"
  ></textarea>
</div>

Nunjucks

Nunjucks macro options

Use options to customise the appearance, content and behaviour of a component when using a macro, for example, changing the text.

Some options are required for the macro to work; these are marked as "Required" in the option description.

If you’re using Nunjucks macros in production with "html" options, or ones ending with "html", you must sanitise the HTML to protect against cross-site scripting exploits.

Primary options
Name	Type	Description
id	string	Required. The ID of the textarea.
name	string	Required. The name of the textarea, which is submitted with the form data.
spellcheck	boolean	Optional field to enable or disable the `spellcheck` attribute on the textarea.
rows	string	Optional number of textarea rows (default is 5 rows).
value	string	Optional initial value of the textarea.
disabled	boolean	If `true`, textarea will be disabled.
describedBy	string	One or more element IDs to add to the `aria-describedby` attribute, used to provide additional descriptive information for screenreader users.
label	object	Required. The label used by the textarea component. See label.
hint	object	Can be used to add a hint to the textarea component. See hint.
errorMessage	object	Can be used to add an error message to the textarea component. The error message component will not display if you use a falsy value for `errorMessage`, for example `false` or `null`. See error message.
formGroup	object	Additional options for the form group containing the textarea component. See formGroup.
classes	string	Classes to add to the textarea.
autocomplete	string	Attribute to identify input purpose, for example `"street-address"`. See autofill for full list of attributes that can be used.
attributes	object	HTML attributes (for example data attributes) to add to the textarea.

Options for formGroup
Name	Type	Description
classes	string	Classes to add to the form group (for example to show error state for the whole group).
attributes	object	HTML attributes (for example data attributes) to add to the form group.
beforeInput	object	Content to add before the textarea used by the textarea component. See beforeInput.
afterInput	object	Content to add after the textarea used by the textarea component. See afterInput.

Options for afterInput
Name	Type	Description
text	string	Required. Text to add after the textarea. If `html` is provided, the `text` option will be ignored.
html	string	Required. HTML to add after the textarea. If `html` is provided, the `text` option will be ignored.

Options for beforeInput
Name	Type	Description
text	string	Required. Text to add before the textarea. If `html` is provided, the `text` option will be ignored.
html	string	Required. HTML to add before the textarea. If `html` is provided, the `text` option will be ignored.

Options for hint
Name	Type	Description
text	string	Required. If `html` is set, this is not required. Text to use within the hint. If `html` is provided, the `text` option will be ignored.
html	string	Required. If `text` is set, this is not required. HTML to use within the hint. If `html` is provided, the `text` option will be ignored.
id	string	Optional ID attribute to add to the hint span tag.
classes	string	Classes to add to the hint span tag.
attributes	object	HTML attributes (for example data attributes) to add to the hint span tag.

Options for label
Name	Type	Description
text	string	Required. If `html` is set, this is not required. Text to use within the label. If `html` is provided, the `text` option will be ignored.
html	string	Required. If `text` is set, this is not required. HTML to use within the label. If `html` is provided, the `text` option will be ignored.
for	string	The value of the `for` attribute, the ID of the input the label is associated with.
isPageHeading	boolean	Whether the label also acts as the heading for the page.
classes	string	Classes to add to the label tag.
attributes	object	HTML attributes (for example data attributes) to add to the label tag.

{% from "moduk/components/textarea/macro.njk" import modukTextarea -%}

{{ modukTextarea({
  name: "event-description-with-error",
  id: "event-description-with-error",
  label: {
    text: "What is the event about?",
    classes: "govuk-label--l",
    isPageHeading: true
  },
  hint: {
    text: "This will be shown on the public page for the event, below the event title"
  },
  errorMessage: {
    text: "Enter some details about the event"
  }
}) -}}

Changes from the GOV.UK version

MOD.UK Design System components are closely based on GOV.UK Design System components.

For this component we’ve changed the font.

Have you tested this component?

Let us know how we could improve this component or share your user research findings.

Email the MOD.UK Design System team at design-system@digital.mod.uk

Need help?

Email the MOD.UK Design System team at design-system@digital.mod.uk if you have questions or feedback.

Cookies on the MOD.UK Design System

Textarea

What is the event about?

How it works

If you’re asking one question on the page

What is the event about?

If you’re asking more than one question on the page

Error messages

What is the event about?

Changes from the GOV.UK version

Have you tested this component?

Need help?