Accessibility
I aim to make this site usable for everyone, on any device or assistive technology. The most reliable approach is to keep the site simple: plain HTML, clear typography, and minimal interactive complexity.
What I aim for
This site is built to meet the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2 at Level AA. I test against this standard whenever I make significant changes.
What works well
- Full keyboard navigation, with a "skip to main content" link on every page.
- Visible focus indicator on every interactive element when navigating by keyboard.
- Screen-reader landmarks: clear nav, main, and footer regions on every page.
- Proper heading hierarchy: every page has a single, sensible
h1. - Text colour contrast meets WCAG AA across body copy and interactive elements.
- Works at 200% browser zoom without loss of content or function.
- Respects your operating-system "reduce motion" setting; scroll-in animations, the auto-rotating card slider, and the fixed background are all disabled.
- The auto-rotating "What I build" cards on the web development page pause while you hover over them or move keyboard focus into them, so you can read at your own pace.
- The mobile menu works without JavaScript (it uses native HTML
<details>). - Form fields have proper labels and use standard autocomplete hints.
- Fonts are self-hosted from the same origin as the site, with no third-party requests for typography.
Known limitations
- The contact form requires JavaScript to perform a spam-protection check (Cloudflare Turnstile) and to submit. If you can't or don't want to enable JavaScript, please use the email address or phone number on the contact page instead.
- Windows High Contrast Mode / forced-colors. I haven't formally tested every interactive element in forced-colors mode. The site should remain usable, but a couple of decorative elements may look unusual.
- The Swaledale background photograph is loaded via CSS and is not announced to screen readers. It's purely decorative; the meaningful images (the logo) have proper text alternatives.
Spotted a problem?
If something on this site is hard to use, please tell me. I aim to respond within two working days, and I'll always try to fix issues in the next site update.
- andrew@swalesoftware.co.uk
- Phone
- 07404 403606
Enforcement
Public-sector websites and apps in the UK must comply with the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) Accessibility Regulations 2018. Swale Software isn't a public-sector body, but I use the same standard as a guideline. If you've raised an accessibility complaint with me and aren't happy with my response, you can contact the Equality Advisory and Support Service.
Last reviewed: