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Web Site Design - Disability Accessibility

Unfortunately the most commonly used web site design techniques do usually result in websites that do discriminate against disabled people.

I can provide guidance on the accessibility issues for the future maintenance of your website.

For all new websites I advise that current accessibility best practices are applied. As a matter of course I will apply these best practices – do not take this for granted, sadly it is not the norm. Normal practice is to completely ignore disability accessibility issues in website design.

I do not promise that all websites I create are accessible in every respect - this is because

• the best practice guidelines are not definitive and are subject to interpretation,
• there are also different views and opinions on what is best,
• it is still an evolving subject and
• every change to a website can affect accessibility.

I can carry out formal website accessibility testing, if formal approval is required for the website.

Is it my website's code or the page content that must be Web Accessible?

It is both.

Web Accessibility guidelines cover the actual structure of the website (the layout and coding) as well as the page content. So the way a website is built (design, code, navigation etc) has a significant effect on how well the various tools used by those with disabilities will work when trying to view the website. For example, if your website uses lots of Flash and animated navigation elements, chances are someone with impaired vision or motor-control won't be able to navigate the site very well, if at all.

When it comes to page content, good formatting, punctuation, clear language and a logical flow between paragraphs go a long way towards making the web site more accessible.

Other considerations include links in context (describe where the link goes in the link text rather than just "click here") and alternative text descriptions for images.

Why make your web site accessible to all:

Web site owners have a legal obligation

It is a legal requirement

The UK Disability Discrimination Act of 1995 states that it is unlawful for “a provider of services” to discriminate against a disabled person in failing to comply with its provisions.
The wording of the Act did not mention on-line services specifically. In February 2002 The Disability Rights Commission published a Code of Practice which removed any ambiguity by defining that the Act does apply to on-line services such as websites.

Therefore if your business or organisation has a website, it should be accessible to the disabled and you could be sued for discrimination in the UK if your website does not meet certain standards.

Moral obligation:

Why turn people away?

Why discriminate against those with disabilities or special needs. The web offers great opportunities to learn, interact, communicate, be entertained and generally improve our life style. This applies more so to some disabled groups so why put barriers in their way.

It makes good business sense:

Why turn away customers? There are 8.5 million people with disabilities in the UK with an estimated annual spending power of £40 billion (Source: Disability Rights Commission). Making your web site accessible ensures that your online information and services can be accessed and used by these people.

Bonuses:

It actually helps SEO

Many of the techniques associated with good Web Accessibility have a positive effect on a website's effectiveness in search engine optimization.

They also help with browsing a website on other web enabled devices such as mobile phones and PDA’s with little or no extra effort.