Website accessibility

Here are details on how ICAEW make the site accessible:

Layout

We use cascading style sheets (CSS) to manage site layout and presentation. This approach ensures that screen reader users are not required to listen to information about the page display to access the content. Additionally, browser users can easily apply their own user stylesheet to customize how the site appears to them or use built-in browser features like Zoom to view the site in the way that suits them best.

Navigation

Site navigation appears at the start of the page.  Screen reader users can bypass navigation by utilising the "Skip to content" link located at the start of the page. We list related content navigation is listed after the main content.

Content

To ensure accessibility, the content on the ICAEW website has been written and formatted with careful consideration. We use headings to precede sections of text, which allows for easier navigation and comprehension of the content. We use meaningful text for links and include the alt attribute to describe images.

Site accessibility limitations

We strive to communicate with clarity and simplicity. However, some articles may require a level of technical understanding due to the nature of the topic they cover. To ensure maximum compatibility, we develop our site to work with a wide range of the most popular current browsers. While we cannot actively support older versions of browsers, users can still access the website content by turning off stylesheets. This approach ensures that all users have access to the site's content, regardless of their browser or device.

ICAEW acknowledges the fact that it is not possible to create web pages that will look identical for every user. With various web browsers being produced by different vendors, subject to frequent updates, and having different rendering engines on multiple operating systems, ICAEW understands that it is not feasible to ensure that web pages look identical in all browsers.

To ensure the best user experience for the majority of users, web browser versions are assigned a level of support based on an analysis of website user statistics. This ensures that resources are utilized effectively.

Here are the three levels of support based on website user statistics:

• Level 1 support: 5% or more of sessions
• Level 2 support: 2% to 5% of sessions
• Level 3 support: Less than 2% of sessions

ICAEW uses a progressive enhancement approach across HTML, CSS, and JavaScript to provide an enhanced user experience to users of more capable browsers. This approach does not hinder the users of browsers that do not support these features or have these features disabled from accessing basic content. Additionally, ICAEW ensures that the website is accessible to all users.

If you have any suggestions or have encountered any difficulties with accessibility on our site, please let us know by emailing digital@icaew.com