Update on: Accessibility of Public Websites – legislative and practical perspectives
On Saturday 23rd February 2013 a joint seminar was held by the National Disability Authority in conjunction with the European Disability Forum entitled "Accessibility of Public Websites – legislative and practical perspectives".
The European Commission have published a draft EU Directive on the accessibility of public sector websites. The Directive aims to ensure that all key public websites in Member States conform to the international standards on web accessibility, ensuring that persons with disabilities and older people have equal access to these services online. The draft Directive proposes a system of monitoring and reporting on conformance of these websites to the the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0, the international standard for web accessibility.
The seminar gave the audience an opportunity to learn about the new Directive, what it aims to achieve and how and what public sector bodies need to know now in order to prepare for its adoption into Irish law once it is passed by the European Institutions.
The functions of the websites covered in the scope of the draft Directive are: income tax, job search, social-security benefits, unemployment benefits, health-related services, child allowances, medical costs, student grants, issue of passports or driving license, car registration, application for building permission, reporting to the police, public libraries, request and delivery of birth or marriage certificates, enrolment in higher education or university, notification of change of residence.
During the semilunar, a range of national and international experts on web accessibility examined the issues faced by persons with disabilities and older people in accessing online services, what progress has been made to date by public sector bodies in improving the accessibility of these services and what practical steps can be taken in order to improve this level of access.
Speakers on the day included:
- Shadi Abou-Zahra, W3C/WAI
- Susanna Laurin,Funka Nu
- Donal Rice,Centre for Excellence in Universal Design(CEUD) at The National Disability Authority(NDA)
Presentations from this Event
