Accessibility

Signed Stories has a very simple goal – to help improve the literacy of deaf children nationwide by allowing them to share in the joy of storytelling. However, everyone – deaf or hearing – can use Signed Stories and we want every user to get as much enjoyment from the Website as possible.

We hope we have succeeded in making Signed Stories as accessible as possible, for as many of our users as possible.  However, if you have any suggestions on how we can improve the accessibility of the site we would be delighted to hear from you, please email us

Each page on this site is regularly checked for accessibility compliance, using a variety of industry-standard checking tools, plus some additional checks that we have devised specifically for our Website – which is, after all, pretty unique.

For a general overview of what Signed Stories is all about and how to get the best from it, please see our guide to ‘How to use this website’

Signed Stories

Our Signed Stories have been designed to be enjoyed by all of our users.  All of the stories are delivered in British Sign Language (BSL), pictures, text and sound.

Text Elements

BSL access is provided for a large proportion of text content on the Website.  As described above, all of the stories are delivered in BSL, as are the summaries of the stories.  Elsewhere on the site, presence of the 'sign this' icon indicates that, by clicking on the icon, a BSL translation of the content is provided.

All text elements on the Website, including the navigation, can be read by a screen reader. (For further information on how the ‘Flash’ areas of the site can be read by screen readers, see the section ‘Use of Flash’ below).

Navigation

For those that have difficulty using a mouse, keyboard access is supported by using standard shortcut techniques. This site can be navigated without the use of a mouse.

Wherever possible we have used uniform layouts on the pages of this Website. The site is divided into sections, all of which are accessible from the homepage.  The main navigation for each section is always provided in the top left-hand side of the screen.

A Site Map is provided, to give an overview of site content and to allow quick and easy access to all of the pages on the site.

Browser Compatibility

Signed Stories has been tested in the latest versions of all common browsers and, where possible and practical, in previous versions of all common browsers.

Use of Flash

Flash is the technology which has enabled us to deliver our Signed Stories and the rich, exciting themed worlds in which they reside.

Although content created in Flash has often been accused of being inaccessible, we believe that with the correct care and attention, Flash content can be just as accessible (if not more) than HTML-based web content.  Below we have described some of the methods we have used to ensure the Flash content of the site can be enjoyed by as many of our users as possible.

Flash Detection

When a user enters Signed Stories, the site establishes whether they have the Flash Player installed on their machine. If they do not, they are taken to a screen which explains to them that they require Flash to fully enjoy the site and asks whether they wish to download the player. If they do not, they are advised about which areas of the site they can enjoy without using Flash.

Backgrounds

Unnecessary content, such as backgrounds, are hidden from screen readers. 

Navigation

Navigation is associated with a button, which is made available to users accessing with a screen reader. This is called Progressive Disclosure; the user chooses to see the navigation before being exposed to its contents. 

Tabbing

Keyboard users will be able to navigate the Flash using the tab key to move from one button to another (and shift + tab to move back). To activate a button the user presses the ‘Enter’ key. Tabbing between the Signed Stories moves from most to least relevant. For users accessing with screen readers, the text associated with the buttons can be read out by the screen reader.

Motor skills

There are no actions on the site which need to be performed within a certain amount of time.   For those users who have difficulty in using a mouse, all items can be accessed using the keyboard, as described above.

Friendly URLs

Each themed world and every individual book has its own unique, friendly URL.

Zoom

Users can utilize Flash’s inbuilt zoom feature to increase the size of the content.