Alfred & Plantagenet Township enhances web accessibility with ReachDeck
The township of Alfred and Plantagenet is a municipal government situated in Eastern Ontario, about 60km east of Ottawa.
As part of their digital inclusion efforts, the township has integrated world-leading accessibility software onto their website. Thanks to ReachDeck, the township website is now fully equipped with user-friendly speech, reading and translation tools. Read their customer story to hear how they've created an inclusive online experience for their users.
Outcomes
- Reachdeck helps Alfred and Plantagenet township ensure their website meets global accessibility standards
- The accessibility toolbar helps users with visual or literacy impairments to navigate their site
- The township's digital services are now much more user-friendly
The background
On January 1 1997, the villages and townships of Alfred and North Plantagenet were merged to form the township of Alfred and Plantagenet. This township is now a municipal government, situated in Eastern Ontario, about 60km east of Ottawa. The township is made up of seven communities; Alfred, Curran, LeFaivre, Plantagenet, Wendover, Treadwell and Pendleton.
The challenge
The township of Alfred and Plantagenet serves a large community of diverse backgrounds and accessibility needs. As part of their digital inclusion strategy the township wanted to improve the accessibility of their online services. This would enable visitors with literacy challenges, visual impairments, or additional language needs to have equal access to the information on the township website.
The solution
To address their digital inclusion and accessibility goals, the township added ReachDeck to its website. This world-leading accessibility software has helped the township make their website accessible to a much wider audience. The site is now equipped with user-friendly speech, reading and translation tools, and caters for people with mild visual impairments, low literacy, dyslexia, learning difficulties, or English as a second language.
Not only does ReachDeck provide translation services, but it also has an easy-to-use text-to-speech function. Information on www.alfred-plantagenet.com can now be read aloud, and can even be saved as an audio file using the MP3 generator tool to allow for more convenient listening. Other tools include screen masking, a web page simplifier, and more.
Lasting impact
The addition of ReachDeck has made it much easier for website visitors to access the information they need. The accessibility features support those who find reading text or accessing digital information challenging. Altogether the functions transform the user’s reading experience and help make sure the township best serves the communities it represents.
We have found ReachDeck to be a simple-to-use and effective tool to enhance accessibility on our website. The customer support has been fantastic.
ReachDeck
As well as the accessibility toolbar, ReachDeck's features also include:
- The ReachDeck Auditor identifies accessibility errors across your website. It highlights WCAG compliance errors at Level A, AA and AAA, and identifies readability errors such as overuse of jargon or long sentences
- The ReachDeck Editor helps improve the quality and accessibility of written content. As you type, grammar, spelling and readability errors are identified. This helps organisations edit content in line with best practice.
These features identify accessibility barriers quickly and at scale, helping organisations ensure their content can be understood by everyone.
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