Accessibility: why you should get on board
Accessibility: why you should get on board
Posted by:
Richard Morton, Posted on: 28 January 2020
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Categories:
Accessibility
I am the interim Head of Accessibility and Senior Accessibility Specialist at the Government Digital Service (GDS). This means I run the cross-government Introduction to Accessibility training.
In these sessions, I ask people why digital accessibility is important. I often get the obvious answer that accessibility is a legal requirement, but also that it is the right thing to do; that making things accessible for a particular group often helps improve the experience for everyone.
Imagine you are on a train
Accessibility isn’t just about permanent or even temporary disabilities. Have you ever tried accessing a website on a train?
You might experience situational impairments. Your movement can be restricted. The train vibrates making it difficult to click on links or operate small buttons. Background noise and interruptions can affect hearing and concentration. Sunlight, particularly when the sun is low in spring and autumn, can make things difficult to read.
You can’t stop many of these things from happening, but good accessible design can help [...]