Digital Accessibility

Digital accessibility is the process of making digital products accessible to everyone, ensuring that all users can access the same information regardless of their learning needs. Digital accessibility is part of inclusion.

The Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) Accessibility Regulations 2018, require that all our content, including that provided through Blackboard, is digitally accessible. This includes (but is not limited to):

• Captions on all audio and video recordings;
• Alt-text on all images;
• Structured documents and websites (using headings etc);
• Accessible/readable by screen readers or alternative technologies.

For more information:

• Visit The Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) Accessibility Regulations 2018 legislation.
• Watch Make Technology Work for Everyone: introducing digital accessibility.

 

9 Key Things to Consider

Office 365

The following guidance is available to ensure that course or module content created in Office365 is accessible:

• Make your Word documents accessible to people with disabilities;
• Make your presentations accessible to people with disabilities;

On all Office 365 programs you can use the Accessibility Checker to find accessibility issues.

Digital Tools

Many of our digital tools include features that can help with accessibility requirements. For example:

• Automatic live captioning can be turned on in Microsoft Teams meetings;
• Panopto will auto-caption your audio and video recordings and provide students with the option to turn on closed captions. N.B. fully accurate (manual) captioning can be requested through your learning technologist.
• Blackboard Collaborate and Microsoft Teams can be used to provide simultaeneous translation for online sessions.