The Importance of Digital Accessibility

This week we look forward to celebrating Global Accessibility Awareness Day. The objective, to shine a light on digital accessibility with the goal of making all digital products accessible to all, regardless of their ability or disability.

For this blog, we’ve teamed up with Digital Agency Unbranded Digital to provide an overview of what digital accessibility is, as well as some top tips for web accessibility best practices!

 

A navy circle with GAAD inside to represent Global Accessibility Awareness Day

What is Global Accessibility Awareness Day?

What is GAAD? Global Accessibility Awareness Day (GAAD) takes place on the third Thursday in May. Its focus is to make accessibility a core requirement for digital products.

In the UK, it’s estimated that 16.1 million people in the UK (Government’s Family Resource Survey) are disabled – that’s roughly 24% of the UK population. In the UK, the definition of disability is given in a law called the Equality Act 2010. Under the Equality Act, a person is disabled if they have a ‘physical or mental impairment that has a ‘substantial’ and ‘long-term’ negative effect on their ability to do normal daily activities’.

When Was Global Accessibility Awareness Day Created?

GAAD was first recognised in 2012, following a blog post by web developer Joe Devon that caught the attention of accessibility professional Jennison Asuncion. Together, they launched GAAD with the goal of getting people talking, thinking, and learning about digital access and inclusion for people with disabilities.

What is Digital Accessibility, and Why Is It Important?

Digital accessibility is about removing barriers and ensuring that the digital experience – websites, mobile apps, software, and documents work for as many people as possible.

It ensures disabled people can use digital products and services independently, effectively, and confidently. But it’s not just for disabled people. Good accessibility ultimately can benefit everyone, including those with neurodifferences such as Dyslexia, ADHD, and Autism. When we build things to be accessible, we’re also creating better, more user-friendly experiences for all.

 

Digital Barriers

Disabled people may face different types of digital barriers depending on their needs. Here’s a look at some common challenges across different types of disability:

  • Visual Impairments (including blindness or low vision): Challenges can include websites without alt text for images, poor colour contrast which makes text hard to read, or platforms that don’t support screen readers – making it difficult to navigate or understand content.
  • Hearing Impairments: Barriers can include videos without captions, audio content without transcripts – making it harder to fully access or engage with information.
  • Physical Disabilities: Difficulties can arise when websites or apps aren’t accessible via keyboard-only navigation or compatible with assistive devices like voice recognition software – making interaction frustrating or even impossible.
  • Invisible Disabilities (neurodifferences such as dyslexia, autism, and ADHD): Challenges can include difficult to read text – dyslexic people might find large blocks of text, or poor colour contrasted text difficult to read and navigate. Another challenge might be cluttered pages with too much text, bright colours, and flashing videos – this can cause sensory overload.

Web Accessibility Best Practices: Tips From Unbranded Digital

Making your website accessible isn’t just the right thing to do, it’s also a smart business move and here’s why..

People with disabilities represent a significant and often overlooked consumer group, with a combined buying power in the billions. Known as the Purple Pound, the spending power of disabled individuals and their households in the UK alone, is estimated to be worth around £274 billion a year. By ensuring your website is accessible, you’re not only fostering inclusivity, but also unlocking a market with significant purchasing potential.

We’ve teamed up with our friends at Unbranded Digital to bring you some top tips for web accessibility best practices below!

 

Follow WCAG Standards

Follow the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) to ensure your website can be easily used by people with various disabilities, including vision, hearing, mobility, and cognitive abilities.

The WCAG set three levels of conformance A, AA, and AAA. AA level is the most commonly used standard, addressing key accessibility issues like colour contrast, keyboard navigation, and alt text for images. It’s considered the minimum requirement for web accessibility.

AAA level is the highest level of accessibility, aiming to accommodate all users, including those with severe impairments. It includes features like sign language interpreters and multiple content access methods, though it can be difficult to fully achieve.

Font Choice Matters

Comic Sans is often thought to be the best font for people with dyslexia, but in reality, it’s not ideal for most readers. There are other fonts designed specifically to improve readability and accessibility for people with dyslexia, such as Lexend Deca font. This font is designed to make reading easier by using spacing and other features that help guide the eye along the text.

Serif fonts, such as those used in newspapers or books, are traditionally seen as easier to read for neurotypical individuals. However, sans-serif fonts offer clearer and cleaner lines that are easier for many people to read on screens, especially those with visual impairments or dyslexia. Choosing the right font can make a significant difference in ensuring your content is accessible to all users.

Use A Contrast Ratio That Is High Enough

Having the right colour contrast is key to making your website more accessible, especially for people with colour blindness or those who find certain colour combinations visually uncomfortable.

Black text on a white background offers excellent contrast at 21:1, however, it might not be ideal for all users, particularly those with visual impairments or reading difficulties. Softer backgrounds like off-white, blue, or yellow can improve readability and reduce strain, offering a better experience for many users.

If you’re unsure whether a colour combination is difficult to read, there are contrast-checking tools available that determine whether it meets Web Content Accessibility Guidelines. For normal text, WCAG requires a contrast ratio of at least 4.5:1 between the text and its background. However, if you want to achieve AAA conformance, the ratio will need to be 7:1 for normal text

Use Alt Text and Contextual Buttons

Use alt text for all images, charts, and graphs to make your website more accessible for people who are blind or have low vision and rely on screen readers. Alt text should provide a clear description of the image or graphic to ensure it makes sense to the user. Also, make sure that buttons and links are clearly labelled so they can be easily interpreted by screen readers.

For example, a poorly labelled button could say ‘Read More’, while a better labelled button could read ‘Learn More About Accessibility’.

A Golden retriever playing with a blue and red ball, on the beach

An Example of Alt Text on an Image

Alt text on images is important for accessibility – but not all alt text is helpful. A vague or overly simple description can miss the point of the image entirely.

Good image alt text should be a concise but meaningful description of the image. It should convey the purpose of the image—what’s most important for the user to know. Ask yourself: If I couldn’t see the image, what would I need to know’

Poor description: ‘Photo of a dog’. This description is generic and uninformative. It doesn’t tell the user what the dog is doing,  or why the image matters in the context of the page.

Better description: ‘A Golden Retriever playing with a blue and red ball, on the beach’
This is much more descriptive and useful. It gives specific visual details that help paint a mental picture for the user.

How Can neurobox Support You?

Neurodiversity and Disability Consultancy Service – Digital Accessibility Advice and Audits. Let us support you with reviewing your documentation, websites, e-learning products and systems to make sure your employees and customers can access your information as easily as possible.

Assistive Technology (software, hardware, and training) – Have you been recommended Assistive technology through Access to Work or through a private Workplace Needs Assessment? We’re able to supply (and price match) all your recommendations. We’re also able to provide the training if required.

Enabling Access with Assistive Technology (AT)

Assistive Technology (software or hardware) supports people with disabilities to interact with digital platforms. Some of the most common Assistive Technology includes:

AT for Visual Impairments

Screen Magnifiers/Readers such as ZoomText and Supernova allow for enlarging content, adjusting on-screen colours and describing images with alt text.

AT for Hearing Impairments

Captioning software such as Caption.Ed by CareScribe allow users to transcribe audio and take notes.

AT For Neurodifferences

Speech-to-Text software such as TalkType and Dragon Professional can dictate text into different applications such as Word.

Grammar Aids such as Grammarly support user’s with writing and communication.

Text-to-Speech (TTS) such as Everway’s Read & Write can support with reading text aloud and much more.

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