Blind charity launches accessible website
- Added:
- Feb 19, 2007
The website, at www.actionforblindpeople.org.uk, has been designed by agency the OTHER media using the Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) guidelines, and has involved visually impaired people at every stage of the design process.
The site uses and easy to read web colour scheme and non-serif font type in size 14, and also features accessibility tabs so visitors can choose how to view the site. The site utilises access keys so that visitors can navigate using the keyboard only, and includes RSS feeds and text-only viewing options.
In addition, the site uses meaningful ALT text so there is a descriptive alternative for all images, along with descriptive hyperlink text and an 800x600 view so horizontal scrolling is not required, even for users with small screens.
The site does not use frames or JavaScript, which are difficult for special browsers and screen readers to display.
RSS newsfeeds which allow people to subscribe to and automatically receive news from the website to their newsreader
Sophie Gray, Online Marketing Officer at Action for Blind People, commented: " We carried out accessibility testing with service users from a range of groups including blind people (screen reader users), partially sighted people (screen reader and magnifier users), dyslexic people and elderly people. Their feedback was then incorporated into the development of the site and then it was tested again until it was fully accessibile to our users."
Theresa Austin, Account Manager from the OTHER media added: "Developing a truly accessible website is not an easy task but it was a challenge that the OTHER media was happy to accept. For us accessibility wasn't an afterthought but the prime driver in everything we did from beginning to end. Creating a usable website for Action wasn't simply about sticking to the guidelines and ticking the boxes, we took a global view of the users, assessing their needs and ensuring that we fulfilled them".
The website features Action's latest news, information on its services, online polls, a RSS newsfeed of the latest visual impairment sector news, stories from clients and information on how people can support and donate to the charity.
The new site will also feature regular Podcasts including a special Podcast from Billy 'the whiz' Baxter - the fastest visually impaired man on a motorbike - on the launch date.
