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The importance of digital accessibility and how to embed it in your organisation

/ November 10th 2021
Inclusion
Robin Christopherson stood in front of a presentation, screen reads 'with technology came opportunity'

by Robin Christopherson, Head of Digital Inclusion at AbilityNet

 

The reasons for not just considering accessibility but embracing it for a real competitive edge are numerous – but today I want to focus on two main areas; the business case for accessibility and how to do it right within companies large and small.

 

The business case for accessibility

At its core there are three components to the compelling case for considering accessibility in everything you do:

  • It’s a legal requirement – Equality Act and the Public Sector Bodies Accessibility Regulations
  • The ROI is huge – an estimated £274bn disposable income of people with disabilities in the UK and 76% will ‘click away’ if they encounter inaccessibility
  • It’s just the right thing to do – think how important digital is to you…

Table of 6 illustrations of people divided into three separate columns: Permanent, Temporary and Situational, and two rows: Touch and See. In the Permanent: Touch portion of the grid is an illustration of a person with one arm. In the Temporary: Touch portion of the grid is an illustration of a person with an arm injury. In the Situational: Touch portion of the grid is an illustration of a new parent. In the Permanent: See portion of the grid is an illustration of a blind person. In the Temporary: See portion of the grid is an illustration of a person with cataracts. In the Situational: See portion of the grid is an illustration of a distracted driver.

 

I won’t go into any more depth here as it’s all brought together in one handy business case page here on our AbilityNet website.

Oh and by the way, did you know that accessible products are easier to use by all? This is because everyone using a mobile phone experiences ‘situational impairments’ every day.

Here’s a nice infographic from Microsoft to explain the concept.

 

 

Embedding accessibility across your organisation

The best way to review your organisation’s current levels of ‘accessibility maturity’ and identifying and prioritising actions to level up is using a Digital Accessibility Maturity Model. We have one that is free to use.

Our DAMM is a practical way of assessing how well you embed accessibility within your digital products – both internally and those you may produce. It exists to answer two BIG questions we are asked by our clients:

  • Where are we currently when it comes to digital accessibility and compliance across everything we do?
  • What do we need to do next to achieve a position of compliance and even best practice?

Maturity Models are a well-established management consultancy tool which help you address these questions through a structured consultation process. The result? Movement towards a less ad-hoc, less ‘fire-fighting’ approach to accessibility and towards one where shifting left means that everyone has the tools, training and support to do things right from the outset; making sure things are ‘Born accessible’.

We have a self-serve version of the DAMM process to download, as well as more information on how we can help guide the process and provide our recommended actions. Both can be found on the DAMM page on our website.  This Powerpoint presentation is also a good overview.

 

More info about AbilityNet

We offer a range of services from accessibility audits to diverse user testing, from employee assessments to free home visits. You can find out more at www.abilitynet.org.uk.

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