Pas 78 (I've never heard of it before!)

PAS 78: Guide to good practice in commissioning accessible websites.

Originally, the title was 'Guide to good practice in the design of accessible websites'. After the first Steering Group meeting it was decided to change the focus to 'commissioning' rather than 'design'. In April 2004, the DRC published the report of their Formal Investigation into accessible website design / web accessibility in the UK.

One significant finding was that 81 per cent of websites surveyed failed to uphold the most basic W3C accessibility guidelines and specifications, even though many website commissioners and developers claimed to be aware of the importance of making websites accessible. The DRC has concluded that there is a need for best practice guidance on the process of commissioning accessible websites.

PAS78 has been commissioned to provide guidance to website commissioners on:

- the steps that should be taken to commission accessible websites
- the W3C guidelines and specifications to be adopted
- the role of the guidelines and specifications, software tools and user testing within the development life cycle.

The purpose of the PAS 78 is to meet the needs of website commissioners, not website designers.

PAS 78 is not 'rules', is not 'new web design guidelines' and is not 'the law'
PAS 78 is to help site commissioners (those that procure web design services via a website tender submission process, for instance) to ensure that they are able to commission accessible sites. It is intended to be a document that commissioners can understand and can discuss with web design project managers. For example, heavy reference is made to WAI guidelines, usability testing, automated checking tools, etc.

PAS 78 was published in March 2006.

Basics of PAS 78
- PAS 78 is NOT a consensus document (i.e. not all steering group members must agree on the content... this is very significant, actually...)
- PAS 78 will last not more than 2 YEARS before review
- the audience of PAS 78 will be website COMMISSIONERS. It is not a document for web designers (important)

PAS 78 is a 'work in progress'. It could mature into a British Standard.

PAS 78 a DRC-commissioned document, written by a Steering Panel, reviewed by a Review Panel and valid for not more than 2 years after publication, though it does have the potential to be further developed into a British Standard. BSI holds the copyright of the document.

Scope of PAS 78
This Publicly Available Specification outlines good practice in commissioning website designs that are accessible to and usable by disabled people. It gives recommendations for:

- the management of the process of, and guidance on, upholding existing W3C guidelines and specifications;
- involving disabled people in the development process and using the current software-based compliance testing tools that can assist with this.

It is applicable to all public and private organizations that wish to observe good practice under the existing voluntary guidelines and the relevant legislation on this subject and is intended for use by those responsible for commissioning public-facing website designs and web-based services.