Website Accessibility Advice at Coolfields Consulting

FREE 15 Minute Website Accessibility Check

Worried that your site is not accessible? Remember, if people can’t use your site then they will go elsewhere.

We’re offering FREE 15 minute website accessibility checks to businesses and individuals. Let us check for common accessibility mistakes on your site and suggest some improvements.

Find out how to get a  FREE 15 Minute Website Accessibility Check today.

What is Accessibility?

Everybody understands why wheelchair ramps are important in buildings. Everyone understands why induction loops are provided for the hard of hearing. Yes, they’re there to allow as many people as possible to use the facilities or services on offer.

The same is true of websites.

Accessible websites use simple techniques to make it possible for users with disabilities to use them easily and successfully. But it’s not just about users with disabilities – many of the accessibility techniques make websites easier for the elderly to use as well.

Why is Accessibility Important?

With the growing importance of the internet as a source of information and services, websites and applications need to accessible for two main reasons:

Increasing Your Customer Base

The Office for National Statistics in the UK estimated in 2008 that there were 1o million disabled people in Britain. Coupled with this, the Disability Rights Commission in Scotland estimated that the combined spend of all disabled adults in Britain was £80 billion per year.

From these figures it’s plain to see that from a financial perspective it is vital for businesses to provide accessible methods to inform their potential customers and supply their services.

The disability statistics to not include figures for elderly web users – an ever increasing population these days. Accessible websites tend to be easier for elderly to use and interact with.

If your website is not accessible you are narrowing your customer base and therefore narrowing your profits.

Legal Requirement

Accessibility is a legal requirement,  as specified in the Disability Discrimination Act and the newer Equality Act. Service providers must take reasonable steps to ensure that their services are available to those with disabilities.

If your website tells people about your products or allows people to buy them then it is covered by these pieces of legislation. Legal cases have been successfully brought against companies which have failed to comply with the legislation.

Coolfields Accessibility Services

With our extensive experience working with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) we can provide the following services:

Building Accessible Websites

All the websites that Coolfields Consulting builds for it’s clients are built with accessibility in mind. The pages follow all the recommended guidelines (WCAG2.0) and suggested best practices.

If you need to ensure that your existing website is accessible we are happy to take on that assignment too.

Accessibility Testing and Evaluation

How do you know if your site is accessible? Is your site shutting out people with spending power?

At Coolfields Consulting we have nearly 10 years experience of building and testing accessible web sites and applications. If you’re not sure whether your site is accessible to people with disabilities we can help you find out.

We carry out accessibility testing and evaluation and will give you a detailed report showing any accessibility issues found within your site. If required, we can also suggest modifications to the site and best practice techniques to use to ensure that the widest possible audience can access your site.

Why not sign up for a FREE  website accessibility check.

Accessibility Training

Do you need to know how to build accessible websites?

Making the web accessible is something we care deeply about. And so we are happy to share our knowledge with you.

We offer training in all aspects of accessibility and can tailor the training sessions to those who are technical and those who are not technical. We can tailor the training to your specific needs and deliver the training at any suitable venue.

Areas covered can include:

  • Overview of accessibility
  • Types of disability and their special requirements
  • The published guidelines and the legal situation
  • Designing for accessibility
  • Techniques for building accessible sites

Contact Coolfields Consulting today to find out how we can help you

Read Our Accessibility Blog Posts