Draft BSI Standard on Web Accessibility Now Available for Public Comment

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BSI (British Standards Institute) has just released the draft of the first Web Accessibility Code of Practice for public comment.

Its aim is to give “recommendations for building and maintaining web experiences that are accessible to, usable by and enjoyable for disabled people”. It includes sections on:

* use of W3C WAI (World Wide Web Consortium Web Accessibility Initiative) accessibility specifications and guidelines;
* accessibility policies and statements;
* involving people with disabilities in the design, planning and testing of websites;
* allocation of responsibilities within an organisation for accessibility;
* suggestions on how to measure user success.

“BS 8878:2009 Web Accessibility. Building Accessible Experiences for Disabled People. Code of Practice” will be available for public comment until 31st January 2009. You can access the (free) draft in HTML. However, you will need to set up a user account in order to access it. Once you’ve logged in, you can then make comments online. If you find the HTML version somewhat inaccessible, it can be downloaded either in PDF or Word format (at time of writing, a log in is not required).

One thought on “Draft BSI Standard on Web Accessibility Now Available for Public Comment”

  1. A quick update on this.

    The final version of the BS 8878 standard was released in December 2010, and harmonises web accessibility with the sorts of inclusive design processes that have been used in architecture and non-digital product design for years.

    Anyone interested in it can find the official slides on BS 8878 from its launch, together with other free information including case studies of organisations implementing BS 8878, detailed blogs on its use by SMEs, tools and training, and news on its progress towards an International Standard at http://www.hassellinclusion.com/bs8878/

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