How do I know if my website needs to be accessible?
Let me break it down for you
In the UK and many other countries around the world, website legislation falls into two categories:
- Websites within the Public Sector, such as local and national governments, schools, colleges, hospitals etc..
- Every other website
With the Public Sector, the Government issued specific guidelines about the standards required, in 2018.
However, along with every other website, these websites also fall under the Equality Act, which came into force in 2010.
This means that every website that can be accessed from within the UK should be accessible to disabled people.
If your website is not accessible, this means that some disabled people will find it difficult to use and in some cases, they may not be able to use it all.
If your website is within the public sector, you could face sanctions from the Government.
If disabled people cannot use your website, they will not become your customer. They could also sue you, under the Equality Act.
So instead of spending money with you, they could receive money from you in a legal settlement.
You will still have to make your website accessible but you now have a lot of extra costs on top.
I hope you will find that this answers the question.
Caption: A Weimaraner, a large and sleek grey dog, is in the foreground looking confused. There is a busy office in the background.
Would you like to find out more about website accessibility?
If you would like to find out more about website accessibility, please follow these links:
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