Training · Lesson 5
Where do I get help?
Start with free official guidance, then your own organization, then outside help for the big jobs. You don't have to do it all yourself, and you shouldn't try to fix a large website or thousands of documents by hand alone.
Video coming soon. The full lesson is written out below.
Free official guidance
- Section508.gov: the federal government's accessibility guidance, training and testing methods.
- World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI): the people who write the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG), with plain tutorials.
- The Department of Justice's Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) website, ADA.gov: guidance on the ADA, including web rules for state and local governments.
- Your state's information technology (IT) or accessibility office. Many states have their own rules and help.
Inside your organization
- Find out who your accessibility coordinator or ADA coordinator is.
- Ask your IT team which tools and checkers you can use.
- Ask your buying team to require accessibility in every contract for software, websites and documents. Vendors can show proof with an Accessibility Conformance Report (ACR), often made from a form called a Voluntary Product Accessibility Template (VPAT).
When to get outside help
Get help when:
- You have a large website, or many documents to fix.
- You need a formal report of how well you meet WCAG.
- You are buying new software and need to know if it is truly accessible.
- People have reported that they cannot use your website.
Look for:
- Testing that includes real people using assistive technology, not just automatic tools.
- Testers with a recognized certification, such as from the International Association of Accessibility Professionals (IAAP).
- A clear plan to fix problems, not only a list of them.
Keep it going
Accessibility is not a one-time project. New pages and documents come out every day.
- Train everyone who makes content, not just one person.
- Check new work before it goes out.
- Give the public an easy way to tell you about a problem, and answer quickly.
Accessibility is for everyone. Every fix you make opens the door for someone.