{"alias":"blogEntry","byline":"James - Associate Product Manager","standfirst":"","content":{"layouts":[{"type":"singleColumn","areas":[{"items":[{"gridType":"RichTextBlock","content":"\u003Cp\u003EIn the current world of consumerism, we like to concentrate on the next update and the next big release. It\u2019s easy to measure success by the speed at which something is created and if it works, getting content ready and out there as quick as possible.\u0026nbsp;\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EIt\u2019s important to be up-to-date, but by focusing too much on getting something to work it\u2019s easy to miss who it works for, and often accessibility gets left behind.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EAccording to \u003Ca href=\u0022https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/disability-facts-and-figures/disability-facts-and-figures\u0022\u003Egovernment research in 2014\u003C/a\u003E there were over 11 million people living with impairment or disability in the UK, and searches for \u2018digital accessibility\u2019 are at a 5-year-high. It\u2019s vital then to incorporate the principles of accessibility into our digital platform/website, and recently we\u2019ve made a commitment to providing a platform for everyone, regardless of abilities.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Ch3\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EWhat is Digital Accessibility?\u003C/strong\u003E\u003C/h3\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EOne definition of accessibility is: \u201CDesigns which should be usable by people of diverse abilities, without special adaption or modification\u201D. Accessibility can be seen in handles on doors, or ramps to entrances and braille next to lettering. In short, it\u2019s an inclusive approach to design. \u003Cbr\u003EDigital accessibility is the design of online content and platforms with this inclusive approach in mind and can be applied to websites, apps, videos, and everything online.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EDisabilities can commonly be grouped into five categories:\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u2022 \u003Cstrong\u003EVisual\u003C/strong\u003E \u2013 Blindness or colour-blindness.\u003Cbr\u003E\u2022 \u003Cstrong\u003EHearing\u003C/strong\u003E \u2013 Hard of hearing or deafness.\u003Cbr\u003E\u2022 \u003Cstrong\u003ESpeech\u003C/strong\u003E \u2013 Speech impediment or being unable to speak. \u003Cbr\u003E\u2022\u003Cstrong\u003E Motor or Physical\u003C/strong\u003E \u2013 Inability to use a mouse or paralysis.\u003Cbr\u003E\u2022 \u003Cstrong\u003ECognitive\u003C/strong\u003E\u2013 Reading and understanding difficulties, or dyslexia.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EMany people with these disabilities use assistive technology, such as screen readers to help them. But with the recent focus on digital events such as The Great Indoors Weekender it becomes clear that digital accessibility is part of usability, and not addressing digital accessibility means that no matter how good or inclusive an event, it\u2019s excluding those less able.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EThere are some simple checks which can be done to test accessibility, such as trying to navigate a website without a mouse or using an online colour blindness simulator and we\u2019ve listed some basic steps to improving a website\u0027s\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022/accessibility-at-the-scouts/\u0022 title=\u0022Accessibility at the Scouts\u0022\u003Eaccessibility on our Commitment page\u003C/a\u003E.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Ch3\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EOur Commitment\u003C/strong\u003E\u003C/h3\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EOur promise is to provide a platform for everyone regardless of literacy, physical abilities or technical experience. Making accessibility part of our user design is rooted in the movements\u2019 commitment to diversity, inclusion and integrity.\u003Cbr\u003EExisting content is being checked to make sure it meets this commitment, such as our images and videos having captions and transcripts and our website layout designed to be used by everyone in all circumstances.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EThere are plenty of brilliant tools to help with this, such as online evaluations and visualisation apps. But this is not a one-off review, but instead a permanent commitment to making the website design and layout as simple and usable as possible on all devices.\u0026nbsp;\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EA key thing to remember is having this approach doesn\u2019t just make our website accessible, but makes it usable by all. We\u2019re guided by providing for young people in all walks of life, and providing them with skills for life and the chance of better futures. Only by allowing everyone to take part in Scouts can we do this, and making Digital Accessibility a priority is essential to this.\u003C/p\u003E","gtmId":"","gtmClass":""}]}],"config":null}]},"searchDescription":null,"pageType":null,"location":null,"versionDate":"21 August 2020","reviewDate":null,"furtherReading":[{"caption":"","title":"The transformation team","url":null,"newWindow":false}],"relatedLinks":[{"caption":"","title":"The next step on our digital journey","url":"/news/2019/october/the-next-step-of-our-digital-journey/","newWindow":false},{"caption":"","title":"The digital transformation of our website","url":"/news/2020/july/the-digital-transformation-of-our-website/","newWindow":false}],"id":48558,"nodeName":"Making Digital Accessibility a Priority","title":"Making Digital Accessibility a Priority","type":"blogEntry","image":{"url":"/media/10478/scouts-logo.jpg?width=800\u0026height=450\u0026v=1db789232a4a190","caption":"Scouts Logo","type":"jpg","size":30784,"width":800,"height":450,"altText":"The Scouts logo"},"assets":null,"headerOptions":{"headerTitle":"Making Digital Accessibility a Priority","headerSubTitle":null,"headerCta":null,"headerCtaText":null,"headerCtaLink":null,"headerBackgroundColour":null,"showSEOImage":false,"headerBackgroundImage":null,"quickLinks":null},"subHeader":"Read about the Scouts commitment to digital accessibility. 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