Word document accessibility guidelines
Word document accessibility
Using Word documents online
Whilst Microsoft Word includes a lot of features to ensure the accessibility of Word Documents it is still time consuming and relies on the end user having the correct program to open the file.
We therefore recommend that you do not use Word documents on the University website.
Create a webpage
Using a web page instead of uploading a word document has a number of benefits both to the end users and for you in managing your content including;
- Improved user experience on different devices. Different screen sizes and levels of magnification often mean horizontal scrolling is required in order to see all the content, which goes against accessibility best practice.
- More control over design and more options using components editor
- Allow you to add images and interactive elements including videos to enhance the experience beyond a basic text document
- Make your text readable by search engines, improving your SEO (Search Engine Optimisation)
- Simplify the update process when information changes for example in course materials
You will still need to ensure your web page meets accessibility standards but this is much simpler than in a document and SiteBuilder even has a built in accessibility checker to help you.
How to make a webpage
IDG have written some guidance on how to create new webpages in components editor.
If you would like our help designing and building these pages you can submit a project request via our webform.
Exceptions
While the optimal way to ensure your content is usable by the majority of people is to not use a Word document there are some exceptions which the legislation allows
Internal sharing of documents
Word documents are still ok o be used within teams to collaborate on projects via email, SharePoint or OneDrive. .
However, it is still recommended that you use the accessibility features within Microsoft Office to ensure everyone can use your documents easily.
Documents for print use only
If your document is not intended to be viewed online for example some course materials for students to print out themselves then it is not required to be digitally accessible.
In an ideal world the content would be available elsewhere in a digital and accessible way, eg as a section within department web pages.
Historic or archived documents
If a document forms part of an archive or historic collection is does not need to be made accessible.
This rule also exempts any documents created before the legislation came into place on the 23rd of September 2018. However it is worth questioning if files this old really need to be available on the website at all?
Making Word documents accessible
Make it fully accessible
Microsoft Word includes some features to help you format your document in an accessible way. To make sure your document is digitally accessible for emailing or sharing internally we recommend you check the following;
- Legibility and reading age of text
- Colour contrast
- Use an accessible font
- Use heading styles and follow a logical order
- Properly formatted and descriptive hyperlinks
- Formatting of tables
- Alt text on images and other visuals such as graphs, NB: Including images can cause layout issues when viewed in a different program such as open office or older versions of word
Although not an accessibility requirement it can also be useful to use the track changes feature when multiple people are collaborating on the same document, this works best when the file lives in a shared online folder such as SharePoint of Teams where all team members can edit the same version.
Detailed video instructions
The video below was created as part of accessibility training provided by the University in 2021. It is hosted by Kerry Pinny Senior Academic Technologist at Learning Design Consultancy Limited.
The video is 59 minutes long and contains both a description of what the requirements are and a demonstration of how to create and accessible document using Microsoft Word.