Web accessibility for developers and designers

Overview

Web accessibility is now a legal requirement in countries that have disability and discrimination laws, such as the UK. If your web site is not accessible, you risk being sued under the Disability Discrimination Act.

There is no shortage of information on web accessibility. The difficulty for web developers, marketers and managers is in identifying precisely what they need to change in their web site and how to go about it. This workshop provides a practical path through the legislation, describing what you need to do to meet the minimum requirements, how to retrofit inaccessible pages and how to make sure new content is accessible. You will also learn about the business benefits of an accessibility focus, see how disabled people use the web and find out how to test your site for accessibility.

"I learnt a lot about web accessibility without suffering from jargon overload. I've now got a solid knowledge base to push accessibility forward."
– Helen Davey, Orange.

Printable pdf course description for this seminar

This seminar is aimed at

• Web developers who want to write accessible code and appreciate the challenges of Web 2.0 technologies.
• Web site designers who need to produce content that is accessible and engaging for all users.
• Marketing managers who want to find out about the business and brand benefits of an accessibility focus
• Project managers who want to ensure their web projects comply with standards and legislation.
• Accessibility practitioners who want to migrate from WCAG 1.0 to WCAG 2.0.

You will learn how to

• Articulate the business benefits of an accessible web site;
• Intuitively understand the obstacles facing disabled people as they use the web;
• Experience the assistive devices used by disabled people to overcome these barriers;
• Write alternative content;
• Interpret the principles, guidelines and success criteria in WCAG 2.0;
• Evaluate web site accessibility and define how accessibility standards will be met;
• Learn how to check the accessibility of individual pages, using tools like the web accessibility toolbar;
• Appreciate the strengths and weaknesses of on-line accessibility tools like Bobby;
• Use standards and guidelines to design sophisticated, accessible sites that will work in future browsers as well as current ones.

What will I learn?

Introduction: Why is Web Accessibility an Issue?

• The legal framework: standards and the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA)
• The relationship between accessibility and usability
• Benefits of accessible web sites

The myth and reality of accessible design

• Myth #1: “There are too many types of disability to design for them all.”
• Myth #2: “Accessible pages have to be dull, text-only, pages.”
• Myth #3: “Disabled people represent such a small part of our market that it’s not worth the cost.”

The legislative framework

• Interpreting the “Guide to good practice in commissioning accessible web sites”, developed by the Disability Rights Commission and the British Standards Institution
• WCAG 2.0's 4 principles, 12 guidelines and 56 success criteria
• The three levels of accessibility
• What level of accessibility will the court look for?

Types of Disability

• Blindness, low vision and colour deficiency (includes demonstrations)
• Hearing disability
• Physical disabilities
• Cognitive disabilities (practical activity)

Assistive technologies: how disabled people use the web

• How screen readers read a web page
• Screen reader demonstration (video)
• How to simulate screen readers with browser tools
• The four kinds of “alt” text

Testing for accessibility

• What you need to do to meet the minimum standard in WCAG 2.0
• How to use free online tools and software to test your site for accessibility
• Demonstration of various accessibility tools

(X)HTML Standards, usability and accessibility

• “Old school” versus “new blood” web development
• Design examples from csszengarden.com
• Benefits of web standards for development teams
• Implications of Ajax and Web 2.0 for accessibility

Beyond basic compliance

• Moving to CSS and standards-based design
• Implementing an accessibility policy in your organisation

What delegates say about this course

• “The instructor had excellent in-depth practical knowledge and experience. The course opened my eyes to the importance of accessibility and the tools available to achieve it.” – Gerry Loughran, Christian Aid.
• “The course was excellent. Tailored to our needs, it combined a great mix of theory, practical exercises and demonstrations.” – Carolyne Smart, EPSRC.
• "The card game was a creative way to cover the WCAG guidelines and will help me remember and use what I learnt".
• "Really showed me how accessibility doesn't need to hinder a site at all".
• "Highly practical and inspiring seminar to help solve a real life issue".
• "The video clips provided real insights and experiences from people with disabilitites."
• "Lots of interactivity, practical examples and good video demonstrations showing assistive technologies."
• "The practical activities provided good, first-hand experience in how others may get frustrated with poor web page content."
• "The Firefox demo was excellent, it showed me how to carry out manual accessibility checks on real sites."
• "A course that every web/Flash designer must do!"
• "Good mix of technical, non-technical and legal information".

Duration

This course lasts one day.

Continuing Professional Development

Each course delegate receives a certificate of attendence showing 8 CPD hours. More about CPD.

About your trainer

This seminar is led by Dr. David Travis who is a member of the Guild of Accessible Web Designers.

Free refresher training

Our usability training continues after you leave the seminar. People that attend this seminar are eligible for free refresher training. After the seminar, we'll send you a series of follow up articles highlighting different aspects of the training, specifically written to help you apply what you learnt.

Course Schedule

There are no scheduled dates for this course. If you want us to run this seminar as a public course, click on the button below. Once we get 8 like-minded individuals we'll organise a public course and let you know.

In-house training

We can bring this course to you and run it for a fixed fee no matter where you are. Prices from £150/delegate + VAT (assuming 12 delegates).