Website development

The Internet provides many benefits to people with disabilities, such as overcoming poverty through online education and job seeking, increased independence for people with disabilities and access to a wealth of support services. However, inaccessible websites can prevent people with disabilities from enjoying these benefits. As a member of the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), MAA is dedicated to providing support to government and industry in addressing web access issues. This section highlights the current requirements for web access in Australia, practical advice on creating accessible websites and information on the world-first user feedback system AWARe.

Website accessibility standards and guidelines
Validation tools
Livewire Case Study
Examples of accessible websites

Website accessibility standards and guidelines

The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), the main international standards organisation for the World Wide Web, introduced the Web Access Initiative (WAI) to address accessibility issues faced by people with disabilities. Examples of disability groups affected by accessibility issues include people with vision disabilities, hearing impairments, physical disabilities, speech disabilities, cognitive and neurological disabilities, multiple disabilities and ageing-related conditions.

In order to improve website accessibility, the W3C WAI introduced the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 1.0 in 1999. The WCAG presented a practical delivery of universal design concepts, focusing on mainstream usability issues, disability-specific accessibility issues, and the interaction of assistive technology products likely to be used by affected disability groups. The WCAG has become the definitive indicator of accessible web design and has formed the basis of government Information and Commutations Technology (ICT) policy in many countries including Australia. More information relating to policy and legislation can be found in the MAA Policy and Legislation section.

The current WCAG standard is 2.0, released in December 2008. WCAG 2.0 is based around four design principles which state that, in order for a website to be accessible, it must have content that is:

Perceivable - Information and user interface components must be presentable to users in ways they can perceive. This means that users must be able to perceive the information being presented (it can't be invisible to all of their senses)
Operable - User interface components and navigation must be operable. This means that users must be able to operate the interface (the interface cannot require interaction that a user cannot perform)
Understandable - Information and the operation of user interface must be understandable. This means that users must be able to understand the information as well as the operation of the user interface (the content or operation cannot be beyond their understanding)
Robust - Content must be robust enough that it can be interpreted reliably by a wide variety of user agents, including assistive technologies. This means that users must be able to access the content as technologies advance (as technologies and user agents evolve, the content should remain accessible)

(Reference:W3C)

Within the four design principles are a total of 12 guidelines, and within each guideline is a series of testable success criteria. In order to comply with the WCAG 2.0 standard, developers should ensure that they meet the relevant success criteria.

The guidelines are as follows:

Perceivable:

1.1 Provide text alternatives for any non-text content so that it can be changed into other forms people need, such as large print, braille, speech, symbols or simpler language.
1.2 Provide alternatives for time-based media.
1.3 Create content that can be presented in different ways (for example simpler layout) without losing information or structure.
1.4 Make it easier for users to see and hear content including separating foreground from background.

2. Operable:

2.1 Make all functionality available from a keyboard.
2.2 Provide users enough time to read and use content.
2.3 Do not design content in a way that is known to cause seizures.
2.4 Provide ways to help users navigate, find content, and determine where they are.

3. Understandable:

3.1 Make text content readable and understandable.
3.2 Make Web pages appear and operate in predictable ways.
3.3 Help users avoid and correct mistakes.

4. Robust:

4.1 Maximize compatibility with current and future user agents, including assistive technologies.

Further information on WCAG 2.0 can be found in the following documents:

Information on the original WCAG 1.0 standard can also be found on the W3C website, http://www.w3.org/TR/WCAG10/

Validation Tools

Web accessibility evaluation tools can be used to verify if a Web page complies with web accessibility criteria, such as the WCAG. The evaluation tools are generally either online portals or downloadable software applications which allow the user to submit a particular web page for automated accessibility verification. There are many validation tools available, varying in price and quality.

Evaluation tools, particularly those that are freely available are still catching up with the change from WCAG 1.0 to WCAG 2.0 so it is important to check which guidelines a tool supports. We have reviewed three free evaluation tools:aChecker, TAW and WAVE. Of these, the first two support WCAG 2.0 and a new version of WAVE, due for release in early 2011, will also support WCAG 2.0. Media Access Australia highly recommends that you develop your websites in accordance with WCAG 2.0, and test and evaluate your website accordingly.

Case Study

The Starlight Foundation

The Starlight Foundation is an organisation dedicated to brightening up the lives of seriously ill and hospitalized children, and their families, throughout Australia.

One of their most recent projects is the ‘Livewire’ youth website. This youth website has been created to provide young people aged over 10- under 21 years living with a serious illness, chronic health condition or disability with a safe and fun online community. The Starlight Foundation was the first organisation to partner with MAA to improve the accessibility of their website for people with disabilities and ensure that it can be accessed by all children that need it.

Partnering with MAA

When Kylie Johnson, Livewire’s Program Managerfrom the Starlight Foundation approached MAA for assistance in making their ‘Livewire’ website more accessible to those with disabilities, we were more than happy to advise and assist in this process. This began a regular dialogue between MAA's New Project Manager and representative in the W3C Advisory Committee Scott Hollier, and the Starlight Foundation to identify all notable accessibility issues and areas where accessible alternatives could be used. The Livewire Team was able to make simple, cost-free changes such as a simplistic layout, and selecting relative font sizes to allow the user to enlarge text, which could make a significant difference to a person with low-vision.

Suggested changes to increase accessibility

High-Contrast Colour Scheme

Ensuring that high-contrast colours are used in your website design is vital and can make a significant difference to a visually impaired person trying to navigate the site. Contrasting colours such as black and white or orange and black should be used for text and background colours because they standout and are easier to see. Livewire’s website features white text on a black background and contrasting blues, making the website more accessible.

Layout

The layout and design of a website are very important because they can determine the overall accessibility of the site. Screen readers are programmed to process information from left to right or top to bottom when navigating a page. Therefore, the more streamlined and less cluttered a website is the easier it will be for a screen reader to navigate.