Blog
Understanding Website Accessibility
I was delighted to have a conversation last week with Jill Willson from The Equality Practice.Jill is as passionate about Inclusion as I am but the concept of website accessibility was something new to her.I really appreciated the opportunity to explain this in a little more detail. I hope this is of interest to other people as well.The photo of Boots in Chichester I used in the presentation was from the JP Media Website... read more »
An inclusive approach
I had a wonderful conversation with a lady who runs an organisation that is focused on inclusivity, particularly with regard to working with employers, helping them to achieve an inclusive workplace. Ensuring that all the employees are treated equally, regardless of race, gender, religion or disability is crucial. It was a joy talking with her, everything she believes in chimes with what we have always striven to achieve as a web design company, in... read more »
Would you drive a Tesla with only 3rd Party Insurance?
Of course you wouldn’t! However, I am finding websites that do actually have an accessibility statement (most of them don’t), comply with Government Guidelines but still give little protection from litigation!A dramatic statement to make but it is true. The problem is that the Government guidelines are far too narrow and they do not ensure that websites following them, are actually accessible for many disabled people!Here is a simple example. I recently undertook an... read more »
Global Accessibility Awareness Day (GAAD)
May 20th 2021 is Global Accessibility Awareness Day! For the last 15 years, we at Access by Design, have been Global Leaders in Website Accessibility. We have always recognised the needs of disabled people to have equality of access and opportunity to goods, services and information. We were creating accessible websites that worked on different screen sizes since 2006, 5 years before Responsive Design hit the World Wide Web. Within one month of Responsive Design... read more »
Let’s talk about the C Word
The C Word. A word that could be offensive to some of your visitors when they come to your website. If I found it on your website right now, you would be shocked and embarrassed to say the least! You would feel terrible that so many people had read it and just left without you ever knowing about it.That is what happens when you use it on your website without giving it a second thought.I... read more »
Website Accessibility – ignorance is no longer an excuse!
There is just so much misinformation and misunderstanding about website accessibility, where your legal responsibilities lie, what it actually is, the list goes on and on.Website Accessibility needs to be explained, simply and clearly, to everyone who has a website that is open to members of the public. Simply put, if your website cannot be accessed by a group of people (such as people who use screen readers or who cannot use a mouse)... read more »
All that glitters is not gold… that is why websites need an accessibility audit!
I have just finished a website accessibility audit for a publicly-funded organisation in the UK. Their website had been launched last year and they had been asked to have an accessibility audit done. This website accessibility audit was a substantial project! It was an intensive project, my final audit ran to over 180 pages, consisting of over 28,000 words with a few diagrams thrown in. The site had been an amalgamation of 4 existing websites and... read more »
I am afraid that will cost extra…
I took a call yesterday from a Town Council. They had just had their website rebuilt and wanted some accessibility features on it. The web developers have turned around and said that it will cost extra. They now have to get two other quotes to compare, which is why they called.If only that had come to us in the first place. They could have had a fully accessible website that comes with... read more »
Grants towards a website upgrade if your business is in the Chichester area
Hot off the presses today: From the Economic Development Team 26 March 2021 Enabling Grant SchemeWe are really pleased to announce that the Enabling Grant Scheme is being launched and will be open for applications on Monday 12 April 2021. Please make sure that you have read the guidance notes carefully before applying as the criteria have changed and the way the applications are processed is different from previous years. The guidance notes will be available to... read more »
Drop your Cookie Banner or risk prosecution!
Really? Come on Clive, that’s a bit extreme isn’t it?Well, read on and judge for yourself….Cookie banners break Accessibility Guidelines. Many visitors with disabilities are never even aware there is a cookie banner in the first place. This, to me, puts the website in breach of the Equality Act and leads them open to legal action.However, it is not just people with disabilities that are affected.In a family home, someone visits a website and... read more »