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I know we have some webmasters and web development folks here - and I'd like to seek your advice on accessibility in advance of a job interview.
All I really do ATM is put descriptions in the image alt tags and try to make sure sites are clearly legible, with the words all being native text (rather than jpgs or whatever) for screen readers.
Are there any other important basics that a corporate or public sector site should include?
TIA
Ensure that the text can be scaled appropriately (you know, like STW does)?
High contrast option maybe?
I take it that you've looked at the Web Accessibility Intiative?
Generally use the correct HTML tags for the job, i.e. don't use <div class=main_heading> when <h1> is available.
There are online checkers that will both check the markup as well as things like contrast between the colours used for text and background. I find the checkers fine as a starting point but sometimes you feel like you are just heading down the rabbit hole!
High contrast option maybe?
Just meet guidelines for colour contrast is enough to meet AA guidelines (which is what all UK Government sites aim to do).
Plenty of checkers available - [url= http://webaim.org/resources/contrastchecker/ ]I use this one[/url]
Ensure all text is a minimum of 18 pixels and don't let a column contain more than around 60/70 characters (including spaces).
Break the structure of the build down [url= https://www.w3.org/RDF/Metalog/docs/sw-easy ]semantically[/url]
[url= https://www.w3.org/ ]W3C [/url]is the goto place for further help and advice
Ohh, and also think of accessibility in terms of being accessible on different devices too, not just standard of build.
The best WC3 AAA-busting website isn't accessible if the pages don't load correctly in Safari...
The thing with alt descriptions that people often get wrong is they should describe the purpose of the image. For example if it's a linkable image it should describe where that link is going. Most important elements of the page is the title, headings and links. Make sure the links make sense when read out of context. Include Form labels as screenreader users have a forms mode which will look for labels tied to the form field.
Test on real users. Most often the guidelines are just really that. To inform you of potential problems. Testing on real users uncovers more potential issues than the WCAG guidelines
Worth looking at the British standard BS8878 for accessibility that this integrates a framework to web accessibility
Make sure the links make sense when read out of context.
True that - avoid the use of multiple links that say the same thing but go to different pages ie:
News article one
[b]Read more
[/b]
News article two
[b]Read more
[/b]
News article three
[b]Read more[/b]
to muddy the waters on the alt tags. If the image is decoration and does not add to the actual content then an empty alt tag is perfectly fine.
Semantic html structure, using headings correctly is a really big one for screen readers as that is how people navigate around the page. Think of it the same way you would structure a word document report with main header, section headers and sub section headers.
Don't bother with high contrast, as said above just ensure that colour contrast meets accessibility. If someone now REALLY needs an alternative colour scheme then they are more than likely got tools for the job.
There is absolutely loads you can do. Technically any non text content needs a text alternative, so audio and video needs transcripts in an accessible format, plus possibly captions on videos.
Everything needs to be keyboard accessible, so be able to tab around the site and for it to still function. Nothing should move too fast (There is some specific timing but can't remember as above that can cause seizures) Everything that does move should have control options e.g. carousels if auto slide needs a play/pause.
Some links
http://wave.webaim.org/
https://www.w3.org/WAI/WCAG20/quickref/
https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/accessibility-developer-t/fpkknkljclfencbdbgkenhalefipecmb
https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/wave-evaluation-tool/jbbplnpkjmmeebjpijfedlgcdilocofh
https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/tota11y-plugin-from-khan/oedofneiplgibimfkccchnimiadcmhpe
Thanks for all the responses, there's some really helpful stuff there.
I'm not a fan of anything other than black on white for reasons of contrast/legibility. Scaleable text is a good point - and I was already thinking of mobile responsiveness (the site has a youthful audience).
I'm a content person, so usually just have a bit of input on design and then the dev people apply a CSS which meets whatever guidelines. Did have training on the H1, H2 etc stuff years ago, but it's great to get a refresher.
Love the idea of subtitling videos, since that's a growing part of the content offering.