Accessibility requirements are mandated under government policy, legislation, and through commitments undertaken by the Australian Government Information Management Office (AGIMO) to comply with Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0 accessibility guidelines. Agencies must update all government websites (as specified within scope under the NTS) to WCAG 2.0 conformance as follows;
- Level A (Single A) by 31 December 2012
- Level AA (Double A) by 31 December 2014
The importance of thorough business process analysis when designing a WCAG 2.0 accessible form cannot be underestimated. Designing and developing an accessible SmartForm requires a step-by-step approach to requirements gathering, content, structure and layout of the form.
Using the WCAG 2.0 accessibility guidelines, the following checklist has been assembled to assist agencies and SmartForms developers in creating, and/or assessing, the accessibility compliance of SmartForms;
SmartForms Accessibility Check list
For further advice and direction on creating accessible SmartForms with Adobe LiveCycle Designer, the online Adobe LiveCycle Designer Help offers a wealth of information. Searching the help for accessible forms will return further relevant accessibility information.
The SmartForms website members area offers selected information on Design Guidelines, Design Requirements and access to an accessibility based Reusable Components Library. Please note that information contained within the SmartForms website is provided as advice only and should not be considered in isolation. Agencies and SmartForms developers should investigate and interpret the WCAG2.0 guidelines in relation to their own SmartForm requirements on a form by form basis.
