Accessibility Policy

Our commitment to accessibility

Accessibility is a fundamental value rooted in the social model of accessibility, which emphasizes removing societal and environmental barriers to ensure everyone can fully engage with digital content. We are dedicated to creating inclusive digital experiences that accommodate diverse needs, ensuring equal access for all users from the outset of every project.

Our approach

We take accessibility into consideration at all phases of a project – research, design, build, test, launch, content. When describing our approach, we generally refer to it as "Shift-left" – meaning we consider accessibility at early stages in the project, rather than only as part of launch testing and a costly compliance audit.

We always strive to go beyond standards. We follow the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) as a baseline, and always consider opportunities to go beyond.

Standards and compliance

As a baseline, all Torchbox projects strive to meet conformance with WCAG 2.2 level AA. Where relevant, we also consider level AAA guidelines, and emerging standards such as WCAG 3.0. We also apply the Web Sustainability Guidelines, with information about accessibility and intersecting considerations like privacy, sustainability, security, social equity. Where applicable, we also follow the Authoring Tool Accessibility Guidelines (ATAG) 2.0.

Legal frameworks

Here are the legal compliance frameworks we are familiar with:

Testing methodology

Our overall testing methodology is based on WCAG-EM, adjusted to meet the requirements of the GOV.UK Service Standard, in particular requirements to test with assistive technologies. Here are specific assistive technologies we test with:

  • JAWS (desktop screen reader)
  • NVDA (desktop screen reader)
  • VoiceOver on iOS (mobile screen reader)
  • TalkBack (mobile screen reader)
  • Windows Magnifier or Apple Zoom (screen magnifiers)
  • Dragon (speech recognition)
  • VoiceOver on macOS
  • Windows Contrast themes / High contrast mode
  • Operating systems preferences - font sizes, reduced motion, prefers contrast

Wagtail

To learn more about the accessibility of the Wagtail CMS, view their Wagtail accessibility overview and the Wagtail accessibility team documentation, in particular the Accessibility Conformance Report (ACR) documents.

Accessibility services

To learn more about accessibility at Torchbox, view our accessibility services.