I make your documents accessible.
Send me a PDF. You get it back meeting WCAG 2.2 AA and PDF/UA, checked in PAC before it leaves me.
Fails in, passes out
A 7-page council waste guide run through PAC, the PDF Accessibility Checker, before and after I made it accessible.
| PAC check | Before | After |
|---|---|---|
| PDF/UA | Fail: 1,159 failed checks | Pass |
| WCAG 2.2 | Fail: 1,722 failed checks | Pass |
| Tags | None | 80 |
| Images | No descriptions | 2 charts described, 2 photos marked decorative |
| Title and language | None | Set, en-GB |
How this one was done · Download all three examples and test them yourself
Why most PDFs fail
Public bodies have to make the documents on their websites accessible. Most start in Word or InDesign and get exported to PDF, and that’s where it goes wrong.
- No tags at all, so a screen reader gets one long stream of text
- Maps, charts and tables saved as pictures, with no text description
- Headings that are only bold text, so screen readers can’t move through them
- Colours without enough contrast, or colour doing all the work
- A reading order that jumps around the page
People using screen readers or magnification can’t use these documents, and they can be picked up in the government’s accessibility monitoring.
It’s also the law. Under the Public Sector Bodies Accessibility Regulations 2018, councils and other public bodies have to make their websites accessible, including PDFs and other documents published since 23 September 2018. The government’s guidance for public sector bodies sets the standard as WCAG 2.2 AA.
What I do
One job: making documents meet WCAG 2.2 AA. Priced up front, and checked in PAC before it comes back to you.
Make existing documents compliant
Your PDF fixed so it passes: tags, headings, reading order, tables, alt text, contrast, title and language. The layout stays the same. Where text fails contrast, I change its colour as little as needed to pass. Word and PowerPoint files are quoted separately.
Charts, maps and diagrams
Alt text and full long descriptions for every graphic, included in the page price. If a chart or map can’t pass as it is, I’ll tell you and quote separately to redraw it.
Design and templates: quoted separately
Redesigning a document in your brand, or setting up accessible Word and PowerPoint templates for your team. This is custom work, quoted on its own, not part of the page price.
Document checks
A check of a set of your documents: what fails, what to fix first, and a fixed price for the fixes. Useful for keeping your accessibility statement up to date.
How it works
Most documents come back within a week. Long reports with lots of maps and charts take up to two.
- Send me a documentA PDF. Word and PowerPoint files need a custom quote.
- Free check and fixed quoteWhat fails, what it takes to fix, and a fixed price.
- I make it compliantTags, reading order, tables, alt text and contrast, with every chart and map described.
- Checked and handed overI run every file through PAC myself. It only comes back to you once it passes.
What PAC checks
PAC, the PDF Accessibility Checker, is the standard free tool for testing PDFs. It runs three sets of checks. Every document I hand back passes all three. PAC is free, so you can open the file and see the same result for yourself, or show it in an audit.
| PAC checkpoint | What it means | Result |
|---|---|---|
| PDF syntax | The file is built correctly, so assistive technology can open it | Pass |
| Fonts | Every font is embedded and mapped to real characters, so text is read out correctly | Pass |
| Content | Everything on the page is either tagged or marked as decoration | Pass |
| Embedded files | Any attached files are labelled | Pass |
| Natural language | The language is set, so screen readers pronounce it correctly | Pass |
| Structure elements | Headings, lists, tables and images are tagged as what they are | Pass |
| Structure tree | Tags are nested in the right order | Pass |
| Role mapping | Any custom tags map to standard ones | Pass |
| Alternative descriptions | Every meaningful image, chart and map has alt text | Pass |
| Metadata | The title and PDF/UA marker are set | Pass |
| Document settings | The title shows in the window and the file is marked as tagged | Pass |
| PAC checkpoint | What it means | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 1.1 Text alternatives | Images, charts and maps are described | Pass |
| 1.3 Adaptable | Reading order and structure make sense without the layout | Pass |
| 1.4 Distinguishable | Text contrast is at least 4.5:1, or 3:1 for large text | Pass |
| 2.4 Navigable | A title, bookmarks and headings to move around the document | Pass |
| 3.1 Readable | The language is set for the document and for any passages in another language | Pass |
| 4.1 Compatible | Tags are valid, so assistive technology can read them | Pass |
PAC also checks WCAG time-based media, keyboard, timing, input and forms where a document has them.
| PAC checkpoint | What it means | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Validity of document title | A real title, not a file name | Pass |
| Correctness of language attribute | Language codes are valid | Pass |
| Artifacted content on page body | No real content hidden as decoration | Pass |
| Tagged text consists of only whitespace | No tags that only hold spaces | Pass |
| Tagged content outside the page | Nothing tagged off the edge of the page | Pass |
| Presence of headings | The document has headings | Pass |
| Presence of bookmarks | Bookmarks match the headings | Pass |
| Table of contents | Contents entries are links to their headings | Pass |
| Validity of alternative texts | Alt text isn’t a file name or placeholder | Pass |
| Alternative text on text elements | Real text isn’t hidden behind alt text | Pass |
| Completeness of links | Every link is tagged with its text | Pass |
| Lists | Lists are tagged correctly | Pass |
| Tables | Tables have rows, cells and header cells | Pass |
| Footnotes | Notes are labelled and referenced | Pass |
As well as PAC, I review alt text, reading order and headings by hand, because a checker can’t judge whether a description makes sense.
- PDF/UA Pass
- WCAG 2.2 AA Pass
- PAC quality Pass
- Checked in PAC
Pricing
Fixed quotes, agreed before work starts, so you can raise a purchase order. Your first document check is free.
-
Standard page
£3 a page
Text, simple images and simple tables.
-
Complex page
£7 a page
Maps, charts, diagrams or large tables that need detailed descriptions.
Every page includes tagging, reading order, alt text, accessible tables, bookmarks, metadata and a final check in PAC. You pay for the finished document, not the time it takes.
Example: a 40-page report with 8 complex pages is £152.
Included
- Tagging, headings and reading order
- Alt text and long descriptions for images, charts and maps
- Accessible tables and lists
- Contrast fixes, changing colours only as much as needed
- Title, language, bookmarks and a final check in PAC
Not included
- Writing or editing the document’s content
- Redesigning the layout
- Redrawing charts or maps
- Scanned documents and forms
These are quoted separately. If your document needs any of them, I’ll say so in the free check.
Prices are for PDFs. Word and PowerPoint files need a custom quote. Minimum charge £60. No VAT is added: I’m not VAT registered.
Examples
- Fernbrook waste guide. 7 pages, 1,159 failed checks in PAC, now passing PDF/UA and WCAG 2.2
- Brackenford cycling and walking plan. 10 pages, 1,510 failed checks, now passing
- Eastholme Council annual report. 10 pages, 1,168 failed checks, now passing
The councils are made up; the documents are based on real council PDFs, renamed and rewritten.
Working with me
- Priced per pageYou know the cost before you raise a purchase order, and it never depends on how long the work takes.
- Your document, your wordsI don’t rewrite your content or change your layout. Colours change only where they fail contrast, and stay within your brand palette.
- Plain EnglishAlt text and descriptions written to be read, not just to pass a checker.
- ReferencesAvailable on request.