Accessibility Matters: Turning High-Level Audits into Tangible Wins
Accessibility is no longer a “nice to have”; it is essential. As education and skills providers increasingly deliver information and services digitally, the question is no longer whether accessibility matters, but how quickly and effectively it can be embedded. Recent sector work, including a review of the University Vocational Awards Council (UVAC) website, demonstrates how even small, practical fixes can enhance digital spaces’ inclusivity, benefiting all users.
Why Accessibility Matters Now More Than Ever
Accessibility isn’t just about compliance; it’s about inclusion, trust, and user experience. Under the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018, public-facing services must meet WCAG 2.2 AA standards and publish an accessibility statement with a clear improvement plan. Even where the regulations don’t directly apply, expectations of inclusivity are growing across education, skills, and public services.
The Arvato Vulnerability Report highlights the stakes: 48% of vulnerable customers avoid companies with poor accessibility. In practice, inaccessible design can quickly turn into exclusion, and exclusion drives disengagement.
Lessons from a High-Level Audit
A review of UVAC’s website and newsletter in July 2025 revealed patterns that are common across many education-sector organisations:
- Missing ARIA landmarks and skip links – complicating screen reader navigation.
- Inconsistent heading structures – confusing users who rely on assistive technologies.
- Low colour contrast – impairing readability, especially for people with low vision.
- Vague button or icon-only link labels – leaving users guessing.
- Limited keyboard focus indicators – reducing navigability to those navigating without a mouse.
These are not complex problems to solve, but they create real barriers. Small adjustments to structure, contrast, and labelling can deliver immediate impact, enhancing usability for everyone, not just those with declared accessibility needs.
Broader Evidence and Best Practices
The findings at UVAC echo sector-wide frameworks and strategies. For example:
- The Kent Education Accessibility Strategy 2025–28 emphasises improving curriculum access, inclusive environments, and accessible information for learners with SEND.
- The Department for Education’s work on real-time accessibility statements demonstrates the value of transparency and continuous monitoring.
Together, these initiatives reinforce the principle that accessibility is not an add-on but a foundation for digital transformation.
Beyond Compliance: Building Trust and Usability
Accessibility improves the experience for all learners, staff, and stakeholders. For example:
- Skip links speed up navigation for every user, not just those with screen readers.
- High contrast enhances readability in bright light or on mobile devices.
- Descriptive labels (for instance: “View Conference Agenda”) help users scan and act quickly.
When embedded into design processes, these features reduce friction, improve trust, and promote inclusion.
A Sector Perspective
Reflecting on its own journey, UVAC noted:
“Reviewing the accessibility of our website was important to ensure our digital presence supports efficient and effective access to the work we do to champion higher-level technical and professional skills, including higher and degree apprenticeships. Small changes to design and layout can make a huge difference to compliance and demonstrate strong ‘digital first’ principles.”
This is not just UVAC’s story. Their experience mirrors the reality for many organisations: small fixes can signal big intent and have wide-reaching benefits.
Looking Ahead
As the new academic year begins, accessibility should remain high on the agenda. It is an ethical responsibility, a legal requirement for many, and a strategic opportunity for all. With evidence showing how quickly users disengage when faced with barriers, digital inclusion is critical to learner engagement, employer trust, and sector credibility.
The challenge for education and skills organisations is to move accessibility from compliance checklists to cultural norm. By doing so, the sector can ensure that digital spaces truly serve everyone, reducing the digital divide and elevating the experience for all.
By Vikki Liogier an Education and Digital Capability Consultant
But accessibility does remain just a “nice to have”, just count the missing Accessibility Statements sectorwide! It has been 7 years since the Accessibility Regulations came into effect, so what could cause 23% of Colleges and Services to not take the Government or Accessibility seriously? The Government’s own sample testing found 14% and so the people delegated with educating everyone else is astonishingly 9 points worse, not 9 points better, than a random sample. Who can take this sector seriously? Or for that matter the agencies that our delegated with responsibility to coordinate its 100% regulatory compliance/passing these straightforward templated assessment tasks?
https://www.collegewebsites.ac.uk/content-reviews/logos-2025#accessibility-statements
Thanks for your comment, Jed, and for raising such an important point.
You’re right… the gap between the regulations and actual implementation is concerning, especially given the time that’s passed since the legislation came into effect. But I think part of the issue is that accessibility is still widely misunderstood. It’s often seen as either a technical bolt-on or a compliance exercise, rather than what it truly is: a vital part of inclusion and user experience.
For many organisations, especially smaller teams, it can feel overwhelming or overly complex, which can lead to delays, avoidance, or a reliance on templates without deeper understanding. That’s exactly why we focused this article on small, tangible changes, to show that accessibility doesn’t have to be daunting, and that practical progress is possible.
The UVAC review highlighted how even minor improvements, better contrast, clear labels, adding skip links can have a big impact. Hopefully, by demystifying the process, we can encourage more organisations to treat accessibility as essential, and achievable, rather than optional or out of reach.
Really appreciate you sharing the data and always open to continuing the conversation…