WCAG 2.1 AA Checklist
What is WCAG 2.1 AA?
The Web Content Access Guidelines (WCAG) is an internally recognised standard created by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C). The purpose of the standard is to make Web content more accessible to people with lived experience of disabilities and diversity. The standards apply to all content, including documents, videos, images and the Web. W3C are continually updating the standards as technology evolves. The Australian Government currently requires agencies to comply with the WCAG 2.1 AA standards.
This checklist has been provided by the APS Academy in partnership with Services Australia.
Suitable for
APS 1 – EL 2 learning and development professionals developing learning resources for the web.
Why is it important that learning deliverables are WCAG 2.1 AA compliant?
People from a diverse range of backgrounds, abilities, locations, work, contexts, demographics and needs experience learning in the APS. When learning deliverables are accessible and inclusive by design, all APS people can understand, navigate and interact with the experience in their own way.
Who is responsible for ensuring learning deliverables are WCAG 2.1 AA compliant?
Learning materials that are distributed through the APS Academy must be WCAG 2.1 AA compliant. The agency that develops the materials is responsible for ensuring they are WCAG compliant and that both the source and SCORM files have been tested using assistive technologies. We recommend you check WCAG compliance with your IT team and/or the software provider.
What happens when learning deliverables are being procured from suppliers?
When procuring learning deliverables from a supplier, consider including clauses that clearly outline the acceptance criteria, including a report that validates the deliverable is WCAG compliant, has been tested using assistive technologies and the provision of source files.
How do we use the checklist?
The WCAG 2.1 AA Checklist can be downloaded and adopted or adapted for use and is designed to guide the development and purchase of learning resources that comply with the WCAG 2.0 Level AA. It contains easy to understand definitions and links to more information and tools. The checklist will be updated as new versions are released.
What software should we use to create learning deliverables?
Consider using software that provides the greatest flexibility now and into the future. Check file format specifications for files the software can import and export. HTML is the most common.
Why was this checklist developed?
The Academy’s WCAG 2.1 AA Checklist was developed in partnership with Services Australia. The checklist was developed to support accessible quality learning and development in the APS to ensure it is compliant with WCAG 2.1 AA, aligns to the objectives of the Learning and Development Strategy and meets the terms of the Disability Discrimination Act 1992.
How can we develop our WCAG skills?
Each criterion in the checklist links to the W3C guide so you can understand the intent behind it. We have also included links to free online tools that allow you to check that content is compliant with the WCAG standards. Below are some training and resources to help you develop your capabilities in WCAG 2.1 AA compliance.
Please note that the APS Academy does not endorse any particular product or resource and that many other resources exist to enhance your WCAG compliance capability.
List of publicly available training:
- Digital Accessibility Foundations - Free Online Course | Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) | W3C
- Digital Accessibility Training 2020 | Vision Australia. Blindness and low vision services
- Training - Centre For Accessibility Australia
- Intopia – Accessibility re4view and training services
List of publicly available resources:
- Access for all: Improving accessibility for consumers with disability | Australian Human Rights Commission
- W3C Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) - YouTube – The W3C group’s YouTube channel
- Why Web Accessibility Is Important and How You Can Accomplish It | by Oyetoke Tobi Emmanuel | Facebook Developer Circles Lagos | Medium
- Why Accessibility Matters - YouTube
- 9. Make it accessible | Digital Transformation Agency (dta.gov.au)
- Make content accessible - digital guide | Victorian Government (www.vic.gov.au)
- Web Accessibility | Australian Public Service Commission (apsc.gov.au)
- Web Accessibility | Australian Public Service Academy (apsacademy.gov.au)
Don’t have accessibility in-house?
Be aware that not all content can be made accessible for the web and you may need to engage specialist expertise depending on the technology you are using. Your agency or the vendor should test learning deliverables using approved agency assistive technologies to ensure they are WCAG 2.1 AA compliant.
Craft and User Level
This aligns with the APS People Craft at the Practitioner level.
Related topics
Accessibility; Engaging stakeholders; Service design; Communication
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Disclaimer
This checklist was developed in consultation with Services Australia.
The Australian Public Service Academy (APS Academy) and Services Australia provide the information contained in this document for general information only.
The information contained in this document does not constitute legal or professional advice on any subject matter. While the information contained in this document is periodically updated, the APS Academy and Services Australia provide no assurance or guarantee that the information contained in this document is complete or up to date.
The APS Academy and Services Australia does not accept any responsibility for any loss, which may arise from reliance on information contained within this document.
This document may contain links to third party websites; the APS Academy and Services Australia do not endorse or reflect the views on these third party websites and does not provide any assurance as to whether the content on these third party websites is factually accurate or correct.