Creating Accessible Documents
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Creating electronic documents which are designed in accessible formats will benefit all users and is considered an effective way to increase ease of access to your written material. It is also important to be aware that organisations are obliged to ensure that the documents they produce are accessible to all, regardless of their ability. Reasonable adjustments may be necessary to ensure that as many people as possible can access an organisations services.
The Association for Higher Education Access & Disability (ahead) provides useful guidance on their website on ways to create documents that are more accessible to users with disabilities.
Listed below is some of the guidance topics focusing on; word documents, pdfs, PowerPoint presentations and webpages.
For example, when creating an accessible word document:
- Text should be left aligned.
- There should be adequate white space to break up the text by setting the line and paragraph spacing and using bullets and numbering.
- Make it readable by using a simple font.
- Add captions.
When creating an accessible pdf:
- Use Adobe Acrobat to improve the accessibility of a PDF document.
- The most straightforward way to create a PDF is to convert it from a Word document.
- Keep the structure simple, and bear in mind that screen readers will read the content from left to right when deciding on a structure. Add a table summary to explain your table to visually impaired readers and make sure it is meaningful. Use the Touch Up Reading Order tool to check that the table is tagged properly.
- Adjust the accessibility preferences to find more suitable colours, page layout, zoom and other options.
When creating an accessible PowerPoint presentation:
- Use the built-in templates rather than beginning with a blank slide, and give each slide a unique title.
- Add a caption to your image that is useful to readers.
- Use the notes field to expand on important points or summarise diagrams and tables, as a visually impaired user accessing the slides before or after the presentation will then be able to access the information.
- If using videos, use a (free) plug in to add captions and subtitles, which are useful for hearing impaired users.
When creating an accessible webpage:
- Images can be made meaningful to blind people if there is adequately descriptive text included.
- Those who are dyslexic may benefit from a clear layout and content written in Plain English
- Users who have difficulty hearing may need subtitles or a transcript to access videos
- Anyone who has trouble using their hands may need to navigate around the site without a mouse.
For further details on creating accessible documents click here.
Alternatively, if you need further information on how to ensure your organisation can provide accessible documents for all, please do not hesitate to contact one of our team on 01-4151285 or e-mail [email protected].
