Designing for Everyone: Practical Accessibility Lessons
- Diana Buda
- Apr 23
- 4 min read
I’ve recently completed Accessibility: How to Design for All, a course by Frank Spillers through the Interaction Design Foundation. I’m proud to have finished with a 95% score, placing me as the 74th top learner in the UK.
This course gave me a deeper understanding of accessible design and how to build more inclusive digital products. It’s a must for any designer or developer looking to create work that truly works for everyone.
What the Course Covered
Embedding accessibility into design and development workflows
Going beyond compliance to improve usability for everyone
Supporting users with visual, auditory, cognitive and motor impairments
Building and scaling accessibility programmes across teams
7 Key Accessibility Lessons I Took from the Course
These are some of the most practical, memorable accessibility lessons from the course. They’re the kind of tips you can start using in your work today, whether you’re designing, developing or reviewing content with inclusivity in mind.
1. Start with Visual Accessibility
There are many types of disabilities to consider, and trying to design for all of them at once isn’t realistic, especially at the start of a project.
That’s why I found this point so useful: by designing for users who are blind or have visual impairments, you automatically address a huge portion of accessibility needs: nearly 70%.
This means prioritising things like screen reader compatibility, strong text contrast, meaningful alt text, and logical structure, all of which benefit every user, not just those with sight loss.
2. Use Automated Checkers With Caution
Automated accessibility tools like WAVE, Axe or Lighthouse are great for flagging common issues: missing alt text, poor contrast, or skipped heading levels. But they’re just the starting point.
They can’t fully assess how usable your interface is for someone using assistive tech. That’s why the course emphasised that real user testing is irreplaceable. Real user testing gives you insights into how your product behaves in real-world conditions and where real barriers exist.
3. Write Better Alt Text
I will say this time and time again, and for good reason. Alt text is the key to making non-text content accessible. Without it, users who rely on screen readers can’t understand images, diagrams or icons that carry meaning.
It’s not enough to say “Image of a chart”. Your alt text needs to capture the purpose of that image. What’s the takeaway? What’s the context? If the image is purely decorative, make sure it’s marked as such so it’s skipped entirely.
Bonus points: writing great alt text will boost your site SEO.
4. A Surprising Tip I Picked Up: Print in Greyscale
Not working in Figma and able to use thier contrast checker? Offline? Forgot the link to your favourite contrast checker? Here’s a trick: print your design in black and white.
It’s old-school, but surprisingly effective. If you can’t easily read text or see where key elements sit, chances are the contrast isn’t good enough. This simple trick works fast and doesn’t rely on tools.
5. Focus States Are Essential, and Must Be Tested
Focus states show users where they are on a page, especially when navigating with a keyboard. Many interfaces remove them by default or overlook them in styling, making it impossible for some users to move through your content.
What to do:
Always include visible focus styles for buttons, links and form elements
Make them highly visible, don’t rely on subtle colour changes
Test with keyboard-only navigation (no mouse!) to check that users can clearly track where they are
6. Navigation Should Be Effortless
For many users, navigating a website is more than just clicking a menu. Screen readers, keyboard-only users, and voice control users all interact with structure differently.
Key tips:
Keep the navigation consistent throughout your site or app
Use semantic HTML to give assistive tech the structure it needs
Label links and buttons clearly. “Click here” isn’t enough and is not screen reader friendly.
Test with screen readers (e.g. NVDA, VoiceOver) and keyboard-only to check that everything is navigable and makes sense out of context
7. Designing for Older Adults
Accessibility and ageing go hand in hand. As users get older, common changes in physical and cognitive ability can affect how they interact with digital content. Designing with this in mind leads to better, more usable experiences for everyone.
Consider the following:
Mouse control: Can your UI be used with imprecise or shaky movements?
Dexterity and motor skills: Are buttons large and spaced enough for easy taps or clicks?
Visual impairments: Use strong contrast, large type and flexible zoom.
Unfamiliarity with interface conventions: Avoid complex gestures or unexplained UI patterns.
Hearing loss: Don’t rely on audio-only content (always provide captions or transcripts).
Cognitive changes: Keep content clear, avoid information overload, and support task completion.
Error handling: Write friendly, reassuring error messages. Older users may be more anxious when things go wrong.
In Summary: Designing for Everyone
Accessibility isn’t just a technical requirement, it’s a mindset. Completing Accessibility: How to Design for All gave me practical, real-world ways to build more inclusive experiences from the very beginning of a project. Whether you're starting with alt text, improving contrast, or making your navigation more predictable, every small improvement has a big impact.
