In 2009, BSI will publish a new British Standard on web accessibility, building upon its 2006 publicly available specification ‘Guide to Good Practice in Commissioning Accessible Websites’ (PAS 78).
BS 8878 will suggest a practical process for ensuring that the private and public sectors successfully produce digital design that is inclusive of as many of the user population as possible. While disabled people are intended to be the key beneficiaries of the new approach, people whose first language is not English and everyone who reads web content over a mobile device stand to benefit from an approach that encourages the development of ‘accessible user experiences’.
The new standard, BS 8878, will point to WCAG/ATAG/UAAG and the guidance of software developers such as Microsoft, Adobe, Apple and IBM. The standard BS 8878 will not be a technical document. Rather, it is aimed at senior managers, senior marketers and anyone who commissions web projects.
A committee of web accessibility experts is currently drafting the standard, BS 8878. Before it publishes, a Draft for Public Comment (DPC) will be released on 1 December. The Draft of BS 8878 will be of interest to web developers and those who have an interest in the success of an organisation’s website (as employee or customer). Anyone interested in web accessibility issues can download a copy to read. Comments are welcomed and can be fed back to BSI through the DPC website.
Your comments will contribute to the development of BS 8878, and help shape the standard.
By making web accessibility the subject of a British Standard, BSI hopes that accessibility will be regarded as one of the essential building blocks on which any public website (or intranet) is built.
The Draft for Public Comment will be available at www.bsigroup.com/drafts
