Review accessibility through real user tasks. Check text, images, keyboard use, forms and motion, then assign and verify corrections.
Accessibility involves more than checking colours or adding a button later. People need to perceive information, understand their position and complete the required task. This checklist helps design and content teams organise an initial review; it does not replace a complete WCAG conformance assessment. Apply it across real journeys rather than only the homepage.
Define the tasks and the assessment target
List core tasks such as finding a service, selecting a product, reading a document and submitting a form. Include the pages and states involved: an expanded menu, an error and the submission result all matter. A clear opening screen does not establish that the whole journey is usable.
WCAG provides success criteria for web content accessibility. Specify the version and conformance level adopted for the project. Do not equate a tool score with standards conformance; describe what was assessed and which checks remain outside the review.
Review the information carried by text and images
Do headings explain the topic and relationships between sections? Are link destinations understandable? Can people find important decision information within longer copy? W3C's page-structure guidance addresses meaningful headings and marked-up regions.
W3C's image guidance explains text alternatives based on an image's role. Information should not be available only inside an image, while decoration should not create unnecessary repetition. Treat alternative text as a way to communicate the image's purpose on the page, not as a keyword field.
Check navigation, forms and motion
Try completing the primary journey without a mouse. Is focus visible, is the order understandable, and can an expanded menu be exited? Forms need clear field identity, required information and error feedback. Review missing-input and recovery paths as well as success.
For automatically changing content, assess reading time and control. W3C's carousel guidance addresses pausing movement and keyboard operation. An expressive motion system should still let visitors finish reading and manage the movement.
| Area | Practical review | Finding to record |
|---|---|---|
| Text | Read when enlarged and on a narrow screen | Missing or overlapping information |
| Images | Understand the message without the image | Missing meaning or unnecessary repetition |
| Keyboard | Complete the task without a mouse | Unreachable or invisible controls |
| Forms | Submit incomplete information and recover | Unclear fields or error guidance |
| Motion | Read the content and pause when needed | Automatic changes without usable control |
Record user impact and assign the correction
Replace a general issue such as “contrast problem” with the specific text and condition in which it cannot be read. Distinguish a blocked task, a difficult interaction and a smaller improvement. Name the content, design or development owner responsible for the next action.
Imagine a hypothetical contact form displaying an error only through a red border. The person cannot identify what needs changing. The message and focus behaviour need to be considered together. This shows why an accessibility issue may require more than one discipline to resolve.
Combine automated checks with task-based review
Tools can accelerate discovery of some issues; practical use checks and specialist evaluation should be planned where needed. W3C's evaluation resources provide a starting point for selecting methods. Avoid turning a limited review into an unqualified claim that the site is completely accessible to everyone.
Repeat the same task after a correction and record the result. Establish when checks will be repeated as components, content and imagery change. Accessibility needs to remain part of the website's operation after the initial release.