Accessibility Facts
There are a great many myths expounded about website accessibility. This page hopes to set the record straight and give you some idea of the facts so you can make an informed decision regarding your accessibility issues.
Over 10% of the UK population suffers from some form of disability
There are currently 8.5 Million people in the UK suffering from a disability of some description. These people have just as much right to access the internet as any able bodied person and in many cases, the internet has given them a new found sense of freedom. In addition to this, they are just as likely to purchase goods or services online as anyone else and between them, they have an estimated annual spending budget of £50 Million. If you are selling goods or services online, can you really choose to ignore this potential market?
You are breaking the law if your website is not accessible
The 1995 UK Disability Discrimination Act makes it unlawful for any business, public or private sector body, or service provider, to discriminate against a disabled person. This includes those who provide information services as well goods or other services. For those of you who use a website to promote your work, you are required to make reasonable adjustments to the website to allow access to disabled persons. The Disability Rights Commission, set up to safegaurd the rights of disabled people are likely to take action against the owner of an inaccessible website upon receipt of a complaint from a disabled person.
Accessibility is NOT just about blind people
Blind and partially sighted people account for about 2 million of disabled persons in the UK. The rest suffer from all manner of ailments that affect the way they will access the internet. Some people have illnesses such as Multiple Sclerosis or Arthritis that cause them motor difficulties. These people are likely to have difficulty using a mouse. Others have cognitive disabilities such as Dyslexia - simple accessibility features can be of great benefit to these groups. In addition to this, consider the number of people, both disabled and able bodied, who are now accessing the internet using technology that does not have a mouse or a keyboard. Personal Digital Assistants, Mobile Phones and a sundry of other technologies are a major growth area.
Accessible websites have added benefits
Having an accessible website means you have created a better experience for all who use it. A Study by The City University shows that tasks are easier to complete for able bodied people on an accessible website than a non accessible one. In addition to this, search engines find them much easier to index and an accessible website is likely to achieve higher page rankings than a similar non-accessible website. The benefit of this is that higher page rankings invariably lead to increased visits to your website.
Accessible websites do not have to look plain and boring
Many people associate an accessible website with a plain text site. Whilst it is true that a properly formatted plain text website is the easiest way of making a website accessible, this does not have to be the case. With careful and appropriate design techniques it is possible to design a visually pleasing website that is also accessible. This approach does not have to mean a huge increase in cost: - provided the designer sets out with the ethos of designing for all, a website fulfilling the basic criteria for accessibility issues should not be any more expensive than one that is not. Design difficulties and increased costs will only become an issue where you wish to add features that exceed these requirements and, although not compulsory, these added features can make a huge difference to people suffering from certain disabilities.
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