Charity Website Accessibility Checklist: Quick Wins for Small Community Sites
Why it matters: Use this non-technical accessibility checklist to improve everyday pages on a small charity or community website, one priority page at a time.
You'll explore:
- Accessibility is everyday website maintenance, not a one-off project
- Start with the pages people rely on most
- The 30-minute triage: find the biggest barriers quickly
- Content checklist: headings, links, labels, and plain language
- Navigation, layout, colour, and readability checklist
- Images, icons, video, and audio checklist
- Forms, referrals, and downloads checklist
- Make it routine: issue log, publishing checks, and what to do next
Accessibility is everyday website maintenance, not a one-off project
Accessibility is easiest to improve when it becomes part of normal website maintenance: editing a page, adding an event, publishing a form, uploading a document, or checking contact details. You do not need to start with a full rebuild to remove common barriers from an existing small charity or community website. This checklist is designed for maintainers with limited time and confidence. It focuses on practical checks you can usually do in a content management system: clearer headings, meaningful links, readable layouts, useful alt text, better form instructions, and safer publishing habits. It also has limits. A checklist can help you find and fix obvious problems, but it cannot guarantee that every person can use every page, prove legal compliance, or replace specialist testing where that is needed.
Start with the pages people rely on most
If your site has dozens of pages, do not begin by trying to check everything. Start with the pages people use to contact you, understand what is available, complete a form, attend an event, join, donate, volunteer, or download essential information. Prioritising by task keeps the work manageable. A rarely viewed archive page can wait if a current referral form, contact page, or activity page is harder to use. Work through one page at a time, record issues, fix what you can, and move on to the next priority page.
The 30-minute triage: find the biggest barriers quickly
A short triage pass helps you find obvious barriers before making detailed edits. Choose one high-priority page, open it as a visitor would, and move through it slowly. Use a keyboard as well as a mouse. Read the page headings and links out of context. Try any form or download path that people rely on. The aim is not to create a perfect audit. The aim is to find issues that could stop someone from understanding the page, moving around it, completing a task, or knowing what to do next.
Content checklist: headings, links, labels, and plain language
Many accessibility improvements are content edits. Good headings help people scan the page and move through it with assistive technology. Descriptive links help people understand what will happen before they click. Clear labels and instructions reduce guesswork, especially on forms and task pages. Write for the person who has arrived with a practical need: they may want to know whether they are eligible, where to go, what it costs, how to ask for help, or what will happen after they submit a form. Put that information in direct language and keep it up to date.
Navigation, layout, colour, and readability checklist
Accessibility is not only about the words on the page. People also need to move through the site predictably, understand what is interactive, see where they are, and read important information without relying on colour or layout clues alone. Check menus, buttons, accordions, pop-ups, and forms with the keyboard. Look for places where the current focus disappears, where buttons are hard to read, or where important warnings are shown only by colour. If the problem is built into the website theme, menu system, or form plugin, record it clearly and ask for technical help rather than trying to work around it with more text.
Images, icons, video, and audio checklist
Media can help people understand your work, but it can also hide important information if there is no text alternative. Start by asking what job each image, icon, video, or audio clip is doing on the page. If it carries information, that information needs to be available in text as well.
- Write alt text for informative images, such as a photo showing a venue entrance, a diagram, or an image used as a link.
- Do not use alt text to repeat nearby text when the image is only decorative; if your CMS allows it, mark decorative images as decorative or leave the alt field empty.
- Avoid putting essential information only inside an image, poster, flyer, or screenshot. Add the key details as normal page text.
- Use text labels as well as icons for actions such as donate, search, download, email, or open menu.
- For videos, provide captions or a text version of the essential information, especially for event instructions, service explainers, or training content.
- For audio, provide a transcript or a written summary of the important points.
- Check that media controls can be reached and used without a mouse where the media player allows it.
- If you publish a social media graphic on your website, include the event date, time, venue, cost, booking route, and access details as text on the page.
Forms, referrals, and downloads checklist
Forms and downloads deserve careful attention because they often sit on the path to support, membership, volunteering, donations, bookings, or referrals. If someone cannot complete a form or understand a document, they may not be able to finish the task they came to do. For forms, check visible labels, clear instructions, required fields, error messages, keyboard movement, and confirmation messages. Do not rely only on placeholder text inside fields, because it can disappear as people type. If a form asks for sensitive information, keep the route clear and avoid copying private details into issue logs or shared documents. For downloads, ask whether the information would be more accessible and easier to maintain as a web page. A web page is often easier to read on a phone, update later, and link to directly. If you must provide a document, use meaningful link text and make sure the page explains what the file is for.
- Add visible labels to every form field where your form tool allows it.
- Put instructions before the field or group of fields they relate to.
- Make required fields clear in text, not only by colour or an asterisk without explanation.
- Test what happens when a required field is missed; the error should explain what needs fixing.
- Check that the form can be completed using a keyboard.
- Make confirmation messages clear so people know whether their request, referral, donation, or booking was submitted.
- Use clear document links such as “Download the volunteer role description” rather than “Download” or “Click here”.
- Avoid scanned, image-only PDFs for important information; add the key content to a web page where possible.
Make it routine: issue log, publishing checks, and what to do next
Accessibility work is easier to sustain when it becomes a small repeatable habit. Keep a simple issue log with the page URL, the problem, who can fix it, the next action, and the date it was checked. Separate quick content fixes from template, theme, supplier, or third-party form issues. Use a pre-publish check whenever you add a new page, event, form, document, video, or major update. Ask: can someone understand this page without seeing the layout perfectly, using a mouse, hearing the audio, or opening a difficult document? Do not send credentials, private records, analytics exports, screenshots containing private information, or identifiable sensitive records into shared logs, AI tools, or public support channels. If you need to describe a problem, use a plain summary, a test page, or a redacted example. This resource is intended as a self-serve maintenance guide. Chestnut Communities is not currently offering paid website reviews, implementation, urgent support, or automatic AI replies, so use the checklist to decide what your own team can fix and what needs a trusted supplier, developer, document specialist, or appropriate adviser.
- Add the 30-minute triage to a monthly or quarterly maintenance slot if your team has one.
- Run the content checklist before publishing new service, event, referral, donation, volunteering, or download pages.
- Keep a short list of recurring template issues so they can be raised together when you next speak to your website supplier.
- Ask for help when navigation, keyboard access, theme contrast, third-party forms, pop-ups, or complex documents sit outside your control.
- Where a page relates to safeguarding, urgent support, consent, privacy, or eligibility, check the wording with the responsible person before publishing.
Which pages to check first
| Page or task area | Practical reason to prioritise | Quick accessibility checks | Notes for limited time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Contact, opening times, and location pages | People may need these to reach the organisation | Headings, phone/email link text, map alternatives, contrast | Check whenever details change |
| Referral, support request, or enquiry pages | People may need to complete a task | Labels, required fields, error messages, keyboard access | Prioritise if people cannot complete the form another way |
| Key service, group, or activity pages | People use these to understand what is available | Plain language, page structure, descriptive links, readable layout | Start with the most current pages |
| Event and venue information | People may need practical access details | Date/time clarity, venue details, transport information, captions for videos | Check before publishing or promoting events |
| Download-heavy pages | Important information may be locked in documents | Meaningful link text, document format, HTML alternative, scanned PDF issues | Replace repeated downloads with web-page content where possible |
| Donation, membership, or volunteering forms | People may be completing a commitment | Labels, instructions, errors, keyboard flow, confirmation messages | Ask for help if the form is controlled by a third-party tool |
Fix it yourself or ask for help
| Barrier found | Try first in the CMS | Ask for help if |
|---|---|---|
| Headings are used only for visual size | Apply heading styles in a logical order | The theme makes headings look wrong or skips levels automatically |
| Links say “click here” or “read more” | Rewrite links so they describe the destination or action | Link text is generated automatically and cannot be edited |
| Important text has low contrast | Choose clearer text and background colours in the editor | Brand/theme colours fail across templates or buttons |
| Keyboard focus is missing or confusing | Test the page with Tab and record where focus disappears | Menus, accordions, pop-ups, or forms cannot be used without a mouse |
| Form fields are unclear | Add visible labels, instructions, and helpful error text | The form builder will not expose labels or error messages |
| PDF is scanned, image-only, or hard to navigate | Add the key information as an HTML page and link clearly to the file | The document is long, official, or needs structured remediation |
30-minute accessibility triage checklist
- Choose one high-priority page rather than trying to review the whole site.
- Use the keyboard Tab key to move through links, buttons, menus, and forms.
- Check whether the current keyboard focus is visible at each step.
- Scan the page headings to see whether they describe the page in a logical order.
- Look for vague link text such as “click here”, “more”, or repeated “download”.
- Check whether important text relies on colour, position, or an icon alone.
- Review images, video, audio, and downloads for missing text alternatives.
- Try submitting any form with an empty required field to check whether the error is understandable.
- Record each issue in a simple log with page URL, problem, owner, and next action.
Content accessibility checklist
- Use one clear page title and a logical sequence of headings.
- Do not choose heading levels only to change text size.
- Write link text that makes sense out of context.
- Use plain, direct language for tasks, eligibility, dates, costs, and contact options.
- Break long blocks of text into short sections, lists, or clear steps.
- Explain abbreviations, local terms, and programme names the first time they appear.
- Make labels and instructions visible rather than relying on placeholder text only.
- Keep page information current so people do not have to guess which details still apply.
Navigation, layout, colour, and readability checklist
- Check that menus, buttons, accordions, and pop-ups can be reached and used with a keyboard.
- Make sure the visible focus indicator is not hidden by the design.
- Avoid using colour alone to show warnings, status, required fields, or links.
- Choose text and background colours with strong contrast, especially for buttons and small text.
- Keep line lengths, spacing, and section breaks comfortable to read.
- Make important actions visually and textually clear, not only positioned in a prominent place.
- Check that pages remain understandable when zoomed or viewed on a small screen.
- Avoid layouts that require people to compare information across distant parts of the page.
This is a maintenance checklist, not a compliance guarantee
What this guide is based on
When to ask for help
Frequently asked questions
What should a small charity check first if it only has limited time?
Start with pages people rely on to complete a real task: contact details, opening times, referral or enquiry forms, key service pages, event and venue information, donation or volunteering forms, and pages with important downloads. Choose one priority page, run the 30-minute triage, fix what you can, and record anything that needs help.
Do all images need alt text?
No. Images that carry information need a text alternative. For example, a venue photo that shows the entrance, a diagram, a poster, or an image used as a link needs useful alt text or nearby page text that gives the same information. Decorative images do not need descriptive alt text; if your CMS allows it, mark them as decorative or leave the alt field empty.
Can this checklist prove our website is legally compliant?
No. This checklist is a practical maintenance tool, not a compliance guarantee or legal assessment. It can help you find common barriers and improve existing pages, but it cannot prove that your whole website meets every accessibility requirement. If you need assurance for legal, funding, procurement, or high-risk service reasons, seek appropriate specialist advice.
Is it better to fix a PDF or turn it into a web page?
If the information is important, frequently updated, or needed on a phone, turning it into a web page is often the more maintainable option. A web page can be easier to scan, update, search, and link to. Keep the PDF only where it is genuinely needed, and make sure the page explains what the document is, who it is for, and where to get help if someone cannot use it.
How often should we run accessibility checks?
Run a quick check whenever you publish or significantly update important content. That includes forms, event pages, service pages, downloads, videos, contact details, and referral information. If your team has a regular website maintenance slot, add one priority-page triage to it so accessibility work becomes routine rather than a one-off project.
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