Regulating digital accessibility & encouraging compliance · Regulating digital accessibility & encouraging compliance. Clive Holdsworth. Head of Digital. May 25 2011

Regulating digital accessibility & encouraging compliance

Clive HoldsworthHead of DigitalMay 25 2011

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Agenda

• The Equality Act

• Codes and guidance

• Principles and application

• Legal case example

• Digital Accessibility – Web Essentials eLearning

• Recommendations for compliance

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The legal contextThe Equality Act 2010•Supersedes Disability Discrimination Act (except in Northern Ireland)•Strengthening: improving the effectiveness of equality legislation• Harmonising: providing the same level of protection from discrimination across all protected characteristics and all sectors, where appropriate• Streamlining: simplifying and consolidating over 100 pieces of separate equality legislation

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Key aspects of Equality Law• Discrimination – direct & indirect

Disabled users should not be put at a ‘substantial disadvantage’ compared to non-disabled users

• Reasonable adjustments

• Public Sector Equality Duty

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Sources of informationStatutory codes of practice

Legal status - can be used in court

• Employment – Employers & workers• Services, public functions & associations –

Providers and users• Further and higher education• Schools • Public Sector Equality Duty

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Service codes

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Reference examples

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Sources of informationNon-statutory guidance

No legal status in court – guidance only

• Employment• Services, public functions & associations• Further and higher education• Schools• Public Sector Equality Duty• Digital Accessibility (Late Summer 2011)• Supplemented by forthcoming eLearning

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Codes & Guidance on EHRC site

http://www.equalityhumanrights.com/advice-and-guidance/new-equality-act-guidance

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Principles & application 1

• All people, irrespective of race, religion, gender, age, disability, sexuality or transgender status should be provided with equality of opportunity

• Poor web accessibility means an organisation can be prosecuted for unlawful discrimination

• EHRC has powers to take action directly against organisations who don’t comply as well as support legal complaints from individuals

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Principles & application 2

• UK law does not reference WCAG or other web guidelines – only a court can decide if a website complies or not

• Conforming to a particular level of WCAG does not necessarily make a web site compliant

• Key factor is whether disabled users can access & use the site without unreasonable difficulty – Relevant factors: time, inconvenience and effort

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Legal example from Canada

• Canadian government recruits only through its website

• Donna Jodham, a blind accessibility consultant, sued as she was unable to apply for a job

• Online recruitment process was judged inaccessible so court ruled against it

• Canadian Government have appealed but still seen as landmark ruling

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Digital Accessibility – Web Essentials

• E-Learning course to provide background and guidance on web accessibility

• Developed by EHRC with AbilityNet and BCS• Four topics – What is it, Why do it, How to do it,

How to measure it• Targeted at web owners, wed designers and web

design educators/trainers• Level 1 but potentially an accredited qualification• Pre-launch at eAccess ‘11 on June 28 2011• Available at very low cost

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Digital Accessibility – Web Essentials

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Recommended ways to achieve compliance

• Adopt a user-centred process as advocated in BS8878

• Automated Tools & Expert Reviews• Testing with Users• Professional Accessibility Audits• Take the Digital Accessibility Web

Essentials course

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Questions?

Clive HoldsworthHead of [email protected] 25 2011