Surfing despite visual impairment

AA certification from Access for All, the Swiss Foundation for Disabled Technology Use, attests to its very good accessibility for people with disabilities. The launch was preceded by an intensive and very enriching development period, according to the statement. Sonnenberg, once known purely as a "school for the blind," now accompanies and supports children and young people with visual impairments, blindness, blindness with multiple disabilities, speech impairments and severe behavioral problems. From the very beginning of the project, it was clear that the new website would be used to achieve full accessibility for people with disabilities and would also be used by the foundation's Access for all wants to be certified.

Many things are different in an accessible web project

"Many things are different in a website project that aims for full accessibility," says Irene Dörig, owner of ID Consulting, who was responsible for overall project management, conception and consulting. The high requirements influenced the work from the very first meeting. Indeed, the certification process began in the design phase and took several months during the technical implementation. It was also unusual that it was not possible to go live immediately after the content had been entered. This was because the certification body first conducted a final check of the entire website.

"The hand-in-hand work of everyone involved was especially true in this particular project," says Dörig. Web designers, programmers, copywriters and editors all had to work closely together and never lose sight of the overriding goal of accessibility. Every element, every idea, every deviation from what has been agreed upon and approved must be checked again and again for accessibility. This requires discipline and perseverance, but is also extremely instructive and promotes understanding for the challenges of disabled people in everyday life. The cooperation with the project partners Minz, agency for visual communication, from Lucerne, Intermezzo, agency for online communication, from Rotkreuz, and Urs Kühne from kühne Texte, Lucerne, worked excellently and contributed greatly to the great result.

What is not accessible to the blind is also not available to the sighted

Website accessibility puts people with disabilities at the center. Their access to all functions and content is a priority. What cannot be made accessible to them must also not be available to sighted people. This meant that functions that have now become a valued standard for sighted people on the Internet sometimes had to be dispensed with.

"That was unusual," says Irene Dörig. For example, the main navigation could not be realized with flyouts with direct access to the second and third navigation levels, as these can only be opened by operating the mouse (mouse-over). For blind people, who navigate exclusively with the keyboard (tabulator) and have the content read aloud with a screen reader, functions that can only be triggered with the mouse are not accessible.

The commitment has paid off, the Foundation Access for all, the new website was awarded the AA certificate for very good accessibility. Not only is accessibility certified on desktop screens, but also on mobile devices such as smart phones and tablets. "We are very happy about this award," says Irene Dörig on behalf of all project participants and adds: "We are ready and now well equipped to bring our experience and findings into further accessible web projects!"

Responsible at Sonnenberg Baar: Dr. David Oberholzer (Head of Specialist Services). Responsible at IDC Irene Dörig Consulting: Irene Dörig (overall project management, conception, consulting). Responsible at Minz, agency for visual communication: Susann Blum (Art Direction, Concept), Claudia Zosso (Design). Responsible at Internezzo: Priska Scherrer (realization, supervision certification, technical project management).