The document discusses web accessibility and universal design. It provides an overview of the Centre for Excellence in Universal Design, which aims to stimulate research, provide guidance on standards, and promote awareness and education around universal design. The centre works in several key areas, including the built environment, products and services, and information and communication technologies (ICT). For ICT specifically, the centre has developed national guidelines for digital TV, websites, and technologies used by older adults. It also discusses relevant legislation in Ireland around accessibility. Overall, the document advocates an approach of standards, education, and awareness to improve web accessibility through universal design principles.

2. Implementing web
accessibility – a Universal
Design approach
EDF-NDA Seminar
“Accessibility of Public
Sector Websites –
legislative and practical
approaches”
Donal Rice
Senior Design Advisor, ICT

3. Contents
• Who we are - remit of the Centre
• What we do - areas of work
• How we do it – education, awareness, standards
• Why we do it – motivators; legal, business, social

5. Centre For Excellence in Universal Design
(CEUD)
Standards
– Stimulate research
– Participate in Standardisation work nationally and internationally
– Provide advice to stakeholders
– Encourage compliance
Education and Professional Development
– Incorporate UD content into design curriculum
– Guidance on Universal Design for teaching, examinations and
accreditation
Awareness
– Maintain a best practice database (website)
– Promote awareness and understanding

6. Universal Design aims:
to maximize the number of people who can readily use a
product, building or service which may be achieved by:
(i) designing products, services and environments that
are readily usable by most users without any
modification,
(ii) by making products or services adaptable to different
users (adapting user interfaces), and
(iii) by having standardized interfaces to be compatible
with special products for persons with disabilities.
(Standards: ISO, CEN, NSAI)

7. Built environment
Products & Services
ICT
3

8. 1. BUILT ENVIRONMENT

9. Shared Spaces,
Shared Surfaces
and Home Zones
Research and
Recommendations
for Ireland
Universal Design Buildings Guidelines
Environment

10. 2. PRODUCTS AND SERVICES

11. Size Data for Universal Design in Ireland
(Anthropometry Research,Penn State,USA)

12. 3. INFORMATION AND
COMMUNICATION
TECHNOLOGIES

13. 1)National Universal Design Guidelines for Digital
TV Equipment and Services
the Lived experience of people
using public sector websites
2) Research and National guidelines on
3)Trialing Universal Design Assessment Tool for
assessing use/nonuse of Technology by Older People
Information Communication Technologies

14. Services: Customer engagement
•Standard (SWiFT) on
“Universal Design for Energy
Suppliers” - 2012
•Standard – “Universal Design
for Customer Engagement in
Tourism Services” – in
development
•Toolkit for effective customer
communications – in
development

15. 3
3 3
1
EDUCATION

16. Universal Design 2nd Level
“Designing our Tomorrow Ireland”

17. 3rd
level - Meet the Normals

18. WEB ACCESSIBILITY - AN
IRISH PERSPECTIVE

19. Legislation and policy - Ireland
• Disability Act 2005
– Electronic communications to be accessible, as far as practicable
– Code of Practice: Compliance with WCAG 2.0 (AA)
• NDA Monitoring: 2008
– About half have had their website audited for
accessibility
– WCAG 2.0 - AA or AAA level (32.5% at Level AA
and 17.0% at Level AAA).
• Equality Acts, Education for Persons with Special
Needs education Acts

20. Legislation and policy - Ireland
• “Opportunities for users to provide
feedback should be integrated into the
design of new electronic systems to
facilitate suggestions from those that use
the systems with a view to ensuring
continuous improvement.”
– “eGovernment 2012 – 2015” Action no. 14

21. “Universality Is the Foundation”
“Several principles are key to assuring that theWeb becomes ever more
valuable.The primary design principle underlying theWeb’s usefulness
and growth is universality.When you make a link, you can link to anything.
That means people must be able to put anything on theWeb, no matter
what computer they have, software they use or human language they
speak and regardless of whether they have a wired or wireless Internet
connection.TheWeb should be usable by people with disabilities. It must
work with any form of information, be it a document or a point of data,
and information of any quality—from a silly tweet to a scholarly paper.
And it should be accessible from any kind of hardware that can connect
to the Internet: stationary or mobile, small screen or large.”
- Tim Berners-Lee,W3C Director and Inventor of theWorld
WideWeb. Long Live theWeb

22. United Nations Convention on the Rights of
People with Disabilities
• Universal Design:
– Governments are:“to undertake or promote research and
development of universally designed goods, services,
equipment and facilities…”
• Early Stage Accessibility Definitions:
– “Promote the design, development, production and
distribution of accessible information and
communications technologies and systems at an early
stage, so that these technologies and systems become
accessible at minimum cost” (Art. 9)

23. Our approach to web accessibility
1. Standards
2. Education
1. Awareness

24. 1.Standards - Public procurement
• Standardisation
– Mandate 376

25. 2.Education
• E.g. Events
• “Universal Design for Digital Document
Creation and Publication”

26. 3.Awareness
• Networks
• Research
– “Lived Experience of people in Ireland using
public sector websites”

27. Key findings 1
• 48% of people surveyed do not use public
services online
• 80% satisfaction
– but when questioned - the level of difficulty
would appear to be greater
• Persons with disabilities are 3 times more likely
to encounter a difficulty

28. Key findings 2
• Main obstacles include the
• ‘finadability’
• ‘readability’ of information

29. Key finding 3
• Challenge to provide content that is both comprehensive, and
easy to read and use.
• Disparity between perception of level of accessibility of their
websites and what this and other studies found to be the actual case.
– web accessibility considered a ‘once off’ versus quality assurance.
• significant cost benefits
– Servicing queries via the website takes staff no time as it's self-service, compared with:
• 4 minutes over the phone
• 11 minutes face to face
• 15 minutes by email”

30. New research!
“Measures to improve accessibility of public websites
in Europe”
• 3 questions
• 5 - 8 Member States
Department of Communications, Energy
and Natural Resources

31. The questions:
1. What is the current state of web
accessibility in Ireland and other Member
States?
2. What is being done to improve web
accessibility?
3. What more needs to be done?

32. Recommendations
• on the most effective monitoring and
reporting mechanisms to public sector bodies
in the context of the draft Directive
• constructive suggestions that may assist with its
review in the Parliament and Council and
transposition by Member States.
• costs likely to be incurred and the benefits to
be generated by bringing the samples sites up to
the requisite standard

33. We need your help!
Questionnaires,
interviews,
suggesting indicative websites

34. What does it all mean...
“If anybody asks me what the Internet
means to me, I will tell him without
hesitation:To me (a quadriplegic) the Internet
occupies the most important part in my life. It
is my feet that can take me to any part of the
world; it is my hands which help me to
accomplish my work; it is my best friend - it
gives my life meaning.”
Dr ZhangXu