WCAG 2.2 principles of document accessibility
The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) are internationally agreed upon standards established to help content authors and developers create web content whether a website, web application, or other digital technology, including PDFs with accessibility in mind.
There are four main guiding principles of accessibility upon which the WCAG has been built. These four principles are known by the acronym POUR for Perceivable, Operable, Understandable, and Robust.
POUR is a way of approaching web accessibility by breaking it down into these four main aspects. Let’s examine how PDF Accessibility fits into the four pillars of WCAG.
Perceivable
All contents of the digital document must be perceivable. Each element must be digitally labeled (or “tagged”) so that assistive technology can read it to the user. Failure to digitally tag any element means it is essentially invisible to assistive technology and therefore is not perceivable.
Operable
All functionality within the document must be correctly tagged so that assistive technology can make use of it. Any links must be properly tagged and functional so that they can be activated. Footnotes and tables of contents must also be digitally tagged in order for assistive technology users to make use of them. Headings must be tagged correctly; otherwise, people using assistive technology cannot skim through them to find the content they want to read.
Understandable
Complex elements such as flow charts, graphs, and images must be correctly described using text alternatives (alt-text). Elements such as lists and tables must be tagged properly or they will appear as an incomprehensible wall of text. Without the correct list and table tags, an assistive technology user will have no idea of the relationship between the items that comprise these elements.
Robust
This means the tags and reading order are maintained regardless of technology or software updates. It means that the PDF will read the same regardless of the tool or browser used to read it. Any tagging applied must carry over regardless of how it is accessed.
POUR and the 3 levels of Compliance – A, AA, and AAA
These guidelines work with a ‘success criteria’ organised into three levels of compliance: A, AA, AAA. Level A and Level AA have been adopted by various international standards and legal requirements.
Level A criteria are the highest priority and are typically the easiest to fulfil. If your product satisfies all of the Level A criteria, the entire site is considered to be Level A compliant. Your site will be accessible to many, though often with considerable extra effort on the part of those living with substantial disabilities.
Level AA criteria yield a truly equivalent experience for most users. By fulfilling all of the Level A and Level AA criteria, your site is considered to be Level AA compliant. This level will generally result in content being accessible to most users, though perhaps not with equivalent access for all.
Level AAA provides advanced accessibility criteria. Sites that fully comply with this level are rare; more typically, companies will pick and choose Level AAA criteria to follow depending on the content and audiences of a given site.
UK Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018
The Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) Accessibility Regulations 2018 took effect in the United Kingdom on September 23 2018.
The Regulations had originally been enacted in order to adopt Directive (EU) 2016/2102 – also known as the EU Web Accessibility Directive into national law. When the UK exited the European Union in 2020, the Regulations were amended to remove mentions of the EU and the Directive, but otherwise they remain similar in content to their original form.
The aim of the Regulations is to provide inclusive digital services to the public. They complement the provisions of the UK Equality Act 2010, which is a piece of legislation that protects people from discrimination across all avenues of life, including individuals with disabilities in areas like employment and education. Where the Equality Act covers much broader aspects of equal access and opportunities, the Regulations serve as a targeted framework for the accessibility of public sector websites and mobile applications.
The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) are explicitly named in the Regulations as the standard to follow in order to achieve accessibility. Public sector bodies must adhere to at least WCAG Level AA. Additionally, they are required to publish an accessibility statement that provides information about the level of accessibility of their digital content. The statement should also include details regarding any areas that do not meet accessibility standards, along with contact information for users to report issues and request alternative formats of content.
To ensure ongoing compliance, public sector bodies must conduct regular testing of their websites and mobile applications and write an accessibility audit report every three years. If WCAG Level AA guidelines are not met, the public sector body must develop a plan outlining the necessary steps to improve accessibility.
UK Banks and Financial Institutions
UK Banks and Financial Institutions must ensure their websites and digital services meet the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 at a minimum level AA. This means that their digital services and communication must work with common assistive technologies, such as screen readers, screen magnifiers, and speech recognition tools. As well as providing WCAG compliant PDFs and HTML documents to their impaired Clients.
The relevant legislation is The Equality Act (2010). The equality act makes it illegal to discriminate against various groups, including people living with disabilities. The Equality Act also states that websites must be accessible to all users. The Equality and Human Rights Commission’s Equality Act 2010 Code of Practice states that:
“…duty to make reasonable adjustments requires service providers to take positive steps to ensure that disabled people can access services. This goes beyond simply avoiding discrimination. It requires service providers to anticipate the needs of potential disabled customers for reasonable adjustments.”
While the Act does not specifically reference WCAG, it is generally accepted that adhering to the guidelines will ensure reasonable adjustments have been made.
PDF/UA
Portable Document Format (PDF) is widely used for publishing and reading digital documents and became an ISO standard in 2008. PDF/UA (Universal Accessibility) is a revision of the PDF standard that defines guidelines for making PDF documents accessible and became an ISO Standard in July 2012 (updated in 2014). PDF/UA is referenced by the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0.
PDF/UA includes several features in support of accessibility the core of which is the ability to determine the logical order of content in a PDF document, independently of the content’s appearance or layout, through tags. Hence the term tagged PDF. This makes it possible for an assistive technology like web browsers to read a PDF out loud, reflow it for a small screen and facilitate users who rely on the keyboard control.
PDF has the benefit that it can faithfully render printed material on digital devices and on print media. PDF/UA ensures that documents are fully accessible when they use the guidelines.
Sefas and Accessibility
With over 30 years of experience in publishing and customer communications management, we have continually improved our customer communications publishing and management tools, offering a broader range of functionality with ever more innovative and efficient options.
The integration of people with disabilities being a major element of inclusion, we at Sefas developed a solution aimed at facilitating access to and use of PDF documents for all. In 2014, we implemented an Accessibility function within the DESIGNER design workshop to design and produce accessible PDF documents. We then completed the range with a solution for transforming existing documents already composed into accessible documents in PDF/UA format. Although the best practice is to integrate Accessibility from the design of the document model, the transformation solution can be useful and complementary in the transition phase for documents that have not been designed in the Harmonie Communication Suite (HCS). .
Talk to Sefas, the experts in accessibility today.