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The internet is changing and becoming more accessible
Web accessibility is all about making sure that digital services are suitable for all users, including those with disabilities or other special requirements.
As the internet has become increasingly central to our public life - with banking, shopping and public sector services all delivered online - it's important that people with disabilities can use these websites, or we risk excluding them.
In recent years, GOV.UK has been adapted to make it more accessible for all users, and government departments are expected to make sure that the documents and publications we are publishing are in line with the Digital Service Standard.
This goes beyond making sure that pages can be used by people with disabilities - it includes other considerations, such as making sure that all documents are published in open formats, so that you don't need to own a copy of Microsoft Office.
If we don't make documents accessible, we are breaking the law
Accessibility makes websites and documents better for everyone, but there is also a legal aspect that we all need to be aware of.
Because accessibility is becoming such an important issue, organisations and individuals will make their voices heard if a website is publishing information that is inaccessible. There have been numerous cases of lawsuits being filed against companies in the UK and US in the last two years.
Public Health England is bound to comply with the internationally recognised Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG), which set out guidelines for pages and publications, including:
- don't rely on colour alone to communication information
- provide alternatives to audio and visual content
- provide clear navigation
- ensure documents are clear and simple
- design documents to work on multiple devices
The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities states:
Countries are to promote access to information by providing information intended for the general public in accessible formats and technologies, by facilitating the use of Braille, sign language and other forms of communication and by encouraging the media and Internet providers to make on-line information available in accessible formats (Article 21).
What this means is that we must offer an accessible option when publishing content, or we are breaking the law and breaching guidelines. What used to be advisory, has now become compulsory. This is particularly the case for public sector bodies, so Public Health England is under scrutiny to ensure that we are compliant.
What was once advisory is increasingly becoming compulsory.
This means the old ways we used to design and publish documents now need to be changed. It is important that we do this work to ensure that we uphold the reputation of PHE.
Accessible websites are ultimately better for users
We've talked about accessibility in terms of compliance, but research suggests that in the long run, users overwhemingly prefer to use accessible websites.
This applies to all users, not just people with disabilities. Accessible websites and documents are:
- more straightforward to navigate
- compatible with a range of software - not just Microsoft Office
- easy to read on multiple devices
- simple to quickly scan and learn the relevant information
This means that accessibility isn't about customising GOV.UK so that it's acceptable to use for people with disabilities - accessibility is about finding new ways to publish information that ultimately benefits everyone.
Now you know why accessibility matters, find out what things we need to make accessible.
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