Quick wins

These are the things you can start on today. They cover the most common accessibility failures and make the biggest difference for the most people.

  • Alt text on images. Every meaningful image needs alt text that describes what it conveys — “Three volunteers sorting donated clothing at the warehouse,” not “Volunteer photo.” Decorative images should have empty alt text so screen readers skip them.
  • Video captions. All video content should have accurate captions. YouTube and Vimeo generate auto-captions you can edit — they’re a good starting point but not good enough on their own.
  • Heading structure. Use headings (H1, H2, H3) in logical order without skipping levels. Screen reader users navigate by headings the way sighted users scan a page.
  • Link text. Write descriptive links. “Read our annual report” rather than “click here.” Screen reader users often navigate by tabbing through links — “click here” repeated 15 times is meaningless.
  • Colour contrast. Body text needs a contrast ratio of at least 4.5:1 against its background. Use WebAIM’s free Contrast Checker (webaim.org/resources/contrastchecker). This is the single most common accessibility failure on the web.
  • Form labels. Every form field needs a visible label properly associated with the field. Placeholder text that disappears when you start typing is not a label.
  • Keyboard navigation. Unplug your mouse and try to use your site with just the keyboard. Can you reach everything? Can you see where you are? Can you complete a donation?

Medium-term improvements

  • Run an automated accessibility scan using WAVE (wave.webaim.org) or Google Lighthouse. These are free and catch about 30–40% of issues — a useful starting point, not a complete picture.
  • Include accessibility requirements in your website briefs and contracts. “Meets WCAG 2.2 Level AA” is a single line item that sets the expectation.
  • Train your content team in accessible content creation. This is a 30-minute session, not a course.
  • Create an accessibility statement for your website — it signals intent and gives users a way to report issues.
  • Test with axe DevTools (free browser extension by Deque) for more detailed technical analysis.

Long-term goals

  • Involve people with disability in your user testing. Organisations like the Australian Network on Disability can help you find testers.
  • Build accessibility into your organisational policies and procedures — not as a separate initiative, but as part of how you do everything.
  • Assign clear responsibility for accessibility within your team.
  • Run automated scans quarterly and screen reader tests annually.
  • Be cautious of “overlay” products that promise one-click compliance — the accessibility community has been consistently critical of these. They don’t deliver genuine compliance and can make things worse. Invest in fixing your actual site.