Introduction – Why accessibility matters
At its core, website accessibility is about making sure everyone can use your website with no restrictions or limitations. Experiencing visual, hearing, motor, or cognitive impairments should not prevent someone from being able to access your website or your business.
Within the UK, 16 million people are living with a disability, according to the ONS. This equates to 25% of the population. From an ethical standpoint, it is imperative not to prevent anyone from viewing your website. From a business perspective, it would be poor to cut out a quarter of your audience due to simple design and coding choices.
It is very easy to find out whether or not there are issues with your website that could prevent someone from being able to easily access it. It is also easier than ever now to fix a site or build a new site to ensure it is accessible and legally compliant.
The legal and ethical imperative
UK laws you need to know
Similar to data protection, digital accessibility is not a choice for a business, but a legal requirement. The Equality Act 2010 expects service providers to make reasonable adjustments to ensure disabled people are not placed at a disadvantage. While much of the legal focus is on physical access, this law also applies to websites and digital services.
WCAG 2.2 AA standards
There are specific standards when it comes to websites. The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) are the globally recognised standards for web accessibility. The latest version, WCAG 2.2, defines three levels of compliance: A, AA, and AAA. Level AA is considered the standard level of compliance that most businesses should aim to achieve. The AAA standard is strict and might be expected of public sector websites, such as the NHS or HMRC websites.
The guidelines cover a wide range of factors. From colour contrast and text size to navigation and multimedia alternatives. You can read the official documentation on the W3C WCAG 2.2 page.
The risks of ignoring accessibility
If you are a business owner who has used a web designer or web agency to build and maintain your website, it might be tempting to think it is the designers job to make it compliant.
As with GDPR, it is the role of the business to ensure its own website is compliant and accessible. If not, there can be legal consequences.
While the UK does not publish relevant statistics, reports show a steady rise in cases brought under the Equality Act. In the US, there was a 20% increase in lawsuits related to web accessibility in 2025.
The moral and ethical imperative should always come first. However, beyond the additional legal consequence, there is a brand reputation risk. If your website is inaccessible to 25% of the population, those people will go to your competitor who has made their website accessible.
How to check your website’s accessibility
Step 1 – Run an accessibility scan
With the moral, ethical, legal and business reasons mapped out, how do we now check your website?
The quickest way to start is by running an accessibility test. The 80five Accessibility Scan Tool checks your site against WCAG 2.2 AA standards and identifies areas that need improvement. It is thorough, simple, and gives you an overview of potential issues.
If you want it checked against WCAG 2.2 AAA standard, let us know, as we can tweak our tool to work at a higher standard when required.
Step 2 – Manual checks
Automated tools are powerful, but they do not catch everything. Also, why enter into an automated scan if you can first check it yourself? You can supplement or predate your scan with a manual review using the 80five Accessibility Checklist.
Key manual checks include:
Ensuring all links have descriptive text
Checking that interactive elements can be accessed via keyboard
Reviewing page layouts for logical reading order
Step 3 – Test with real users
After you have used a checklist and had a scan undertaken of your site, the best next step is to invite real users to provide feedback. Charities and organisations like AbilityNet offer user testing and expert advice from disabled people to help ensure your site works for everyone.
How to fix common accessibility issues
Improve colour contrast: Use tools like the WebAIM Contrast Checker to ensure text stands out clearly from its background.
Add alt text to images: This helps users who rely on screen readers understand the content of your images.
Make forms accessible: Include clear labels, error messages, and ensure form fields can be completed with a keyboard.
Check keyboard navigation: Users should be able to navigate all interactive elements without a mouse.
Use proper heading structure: Organise your content using logical heading levels.
The business benefits of accessibility
Accessibility can, unfortunately, be seen cynically as a box-ticking exercise for business owners. It is, and it should be seen as so much more than that.
Website accessibility is fundamental for improving the digital world for millions of people. It can also have some knock-on benefits beyond disabled people.
Reach more customers: Older users and those with temporary impairments also benefit from accessible design.
Boost SEO: Many accessibility improvements, such as semantic HTML and descriptive alt text, also help search engine rankings.
Enhance reputation: Demonstrating a commitment to inclusion strengthens trust and brand loyalty.
Increase revenue: Research from the UK’s Purple Pound initiative estimates that disabled people and their families have a combined spending power of £274 billion in the UK.
Get started today
Providing an accessible website is quite simply about making the digital world better for everyone. Accessibility does not harm the experience for anyone, but opens the door to 25% of the UK population.
It is time to check if your website is open to all. You can do that by taking the following two simple steps:
Review your site against our Accessibility Checklist.
Run a free 80five Accessibility Scan to identify the issue.
An accessible website is a better website. It is faster, easier to use, and open to every potential customer.
