Designing for Accessibility and Inclusivity
In today’s digital world, designing with accessibility and inclusivity in mind isn’t just a “nice to have” — it’s essential. It helps ensure that everyone, regardless of ability, can access and use your website. From ethical responsibility to legal compliance and improved user experience, inclusive design benefits everyone.
What Do We Mean by Accessibility?
Accessibility in web design means making sure your website can be used by as many people as possible — including those with disabilities. This includes people with:
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Vision impairments (e.g. colour blindness, low vision, total blindness)
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Hearing impairments (e.g. deafness or hearing loss)
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Cognitive conditions such as Dyslexia, Autism, or ADHD
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Motor difficulties that affect how users navigate using keyboards or mice
Key Elements of Accessible Design
Colour Contrast
Text must stand out clearly against its background. Poor contrast makes it hard for people with visual impairments to read content, especially in bright or low-light conditions. Tools like WebAIM’s contrast checker can help ensure you meet recommended contrast ratios.
Choosing the Right Fonts
Font choice matters. Avoid overly decorative or thin fonts that are hard to read. Clear, legible fonts like Arial, Verdana or Open Sans work well. Also, ensure text size is large enough and line spacing is generous to aid readability — especially for users with Dyslexia or other cognitive processing difficulties.
Accessibility Plugins
Adding an accessibility plugin to your website gives users more control over how they experience your content. These tools allow people to adjust contrast, increase font sizes, pause animations and more — all without changing your core design.
You can see this in action on sites like:
Why Accessibility Matters
Ethical Responsibility
Inclusive design reflects your values. It shows that you care about all your users and that your brand is committed to fairness and equality.
Legal Compliance
In the UK, the Equality Act 2010 requires service providers (including websites) to make reasonable adjustments for people with disabilities. Not doing so could put you at risk of legal complaints or reputational damage.
Better User Experience for All
Accessible websites aren’t just for people with disabilities. Better contrast, simpler navigation, and clearer text improve the experience for everyone — including older users, people on mobile devices, or those in poor lighting conditions.
Accessibility Shouldn’t Be an Afterthought
Too often, accessibility is left until the end of a project — or forgotten altogether. But by considering it early in your design process, you save time and money later on. More importantly, you create a website that works for more people, right from the start.