Accessibility: what UK businesses need to get right

The changes that matter most

• Text with enough contrast against its background, at a comfortable size
• Every control reachable and operable by keyboard, with a visible focus state
• Proper headings, labels and landmarks so screen readers can navigate
• Meaningful alternative text on images that carry information
• Forms that explain errors in words rather than colour alone

Test with more than a tool

Automated checks find perhaps a third of issues. Add two manual passes: complete a key task using only the keyboard, and again with a screen reader. Most serious problems surface within minutes.

Keep it from slipping

Accessibility degrades as pages are added. Bake it into components so new pages inherit it, include a keyboard pass in review, and treat regressions as bugs rather than enhancements.