The word "accessibility' can often be met with hesitation and apprehension. What exactly does it mean?

Web accessibility ensures people with disabilities, impairments, and limitations can still use the web.

The more important question to ask when it comes to accessibility is "who does it affect?"

The answer to that is everyone  - and that's the number one reason why you need to care.

Still not convinced? Here are some more reasons:

It's the law

Under EU legalisation, any public sector website must be "fully accessible to persons with disabilities".

Non-compliance with accessibility guidelines can result in a loss of funding or even legal action.

The regulation also applies to other types of content, including Word, PowerPoint and PDFs.

It's inclusive

Globally, over 1.6 billion people live with a disability. Over 60,000 of these people live in Ireland, while in UL alone, over 1,000 students use disability services.

Here's a breakdown of this figure:

  • Autism 88

  • ADD/ADHD 60

  • Blind/Visual Impairment 27

  • Deaf/Hard of Hearing 25

  • Dyspraxia (DCD) 42

  • Mental Health 112

  • Neurological 64

  • Significant Ongoing Illness 130

  • Physical 67

  • Specific Learning Difficulty (SPLD) 419

A majority of this group relies on assistive technologies to use the website.

These vary from screen readers to navigate the website, or alternative keyboards, trackpads, screen magnifiers, eye tracking tools, and more.

The way a website is laid out, including the images and text content, determines how easy it is for someone with these assistive technologies to use the UL website.

It makes websites easier to use for everyone

"The power of the Web is in its universality.

Access by everyone regardless of disability is an essential aspect." - Tim Berners-Lee, World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) Director and inventor of the World Wide Web

A website that is clear, easy-to-use and meets all accessibility requirements benefits every single user, regardless of their ability.

You don't have to have a disability to benefit from accessible practices.

Age, digital literacy levels and even other factors like stress levels and location can affect how easy it is to use a website.

For example, if you break an arm or lose your glasses, or are accessing the internet in an area with a slow internet connection, you'd benefit from an accessible website.

Think of it like a ramp outside a building. You may not need to use the ramp, and would often be perfectly content using the stairs. But you might find one day that using the ramp is easier, quicker and more convenient. Not only does it serve those who need it, but it makes life easier for people who don't. This is called a universal accommodation.

The best websites are easy to use and allow you to complete a task regardless of any possible limitations.

It's the right thing to do

Nobody should be excluded from information surrounding UL just because of their additional needs.

The University has a certain level of responsibility to society, and excluding such a large cohort of people goes against our key values.

It just makes sense

Accessible websites have better search engine optimisation (SEO) results, meaning more site visits and a wider audience reach. It's simply a no-brainer.

We're proud of our accessibility rankings

The Web Team have worked hard to ensure that UL.ie meets all accessibility requirements.

Currently, we are in the top three of Ireland's higher institutions' when it comes to web accessibility. And of course, we'd like to keep it this way.

However, with over 60,000 pages on the website, we also rely on our community of editors to advocate and lead by example when it comes to accessibility.

This is why we all need to be on the same page and work together to become web accessibility advocates.

If you'd like to learn more about web accessibility, you can complete this free course provided by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C).