Web accessibility in practice: WCAG 2.2, contrast, assistive technology, and the audits we run on real client sites.
Web accessibility is where design quality and basic decency meet. GOV.UK's service manual puts it plainly: 1 in 5 people in the UK have a long-term impairment affecting their ability to do everyday activities. A website that only works for perfect eyesight on a bright screen is turning away a measurable slice of every audience it pays to reach, and for UK public sector sites, WCAG 2.2 AA is a legal requirement rather than a preference.
The articles here come from the audits we actually run: contrast-testing client brand palettes at kickoff, fixing heading orders that break screen readers, and building sites that pass the checks rather than just claiming to. Real palettes, real ratios, real decisions, with the measurements shown so you can re-run every one of them yourself.
At kickoff, a new client's brief specified navy #0F2744, silver #8A9199 and accent orange #F58220. We contrast-tested the palette before designing anything: the orange measured 2.59:1 on white and failed WCAG 2.2 AA twice over. Here is the full audit with every number intact, what measuring his five reference sites revealed, and how to test your own brand colours before they cost you a redesign.
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