From BiOrgResources

I have written this with the assumption that you are aiming for maximum accessibility by default and are aware of what alternative formats may be useful to consider given availability of resources. Offering people the chance to contact you for access stuff gives you more time and more flexibility.

There are many simple things that can be done to massively increase the readability of textual information for everyone not just those with a reading-impairment such as dyslexia or a visual impairment.

Contents 1 Colours and contrast 2 Fonts 2.1 Font sizes 3 Typesetting 4 Alternative formats

I'm not going to go into lots of detail, but give a few simple tips for each section with links to better info elsewhere for people who want to know more.

Colours and contrast

• Have as much contrast as possible between the text and background colour.
• Light pastel coloured backgrounds with black text can be more readable than black on white.
• If using paper ensure it is matte and not too reflective or glossy.
• Avoid blue/yellow, red/green, blue/green as contrasting colour combinations.
• Avoid textures or images as backgrounds (especially on the web).
• Avoid using colour as the sole means of 'encoding information' add symbols or something else.
• If writing a website consider using CSS so a reader can apply their own stylesheet with their own layout preferences.

Fonts

Funky fonts are fun to play with, but they are often not very readable. Avoid using them at all if possible, or for anything more than very limited purposes. If your information is difficult to read it doesn't matter how funky it is, it's inaccessible. If you do want them, ensure anything in funky fonts is duplicated in a readable way somewhere else.

Some fonts are designed for screen-reading and others for print. On a screen sans-serif fonts are often easier to read. In print a serif font is often easier, but some people find them difficult so it is often also advised that you consider using a sans-serif font in print as well. Good fonts can be:

• Helvetica
• Arial
• Verdana

If you still wish to use a serif font, then I recommend something clear like:

• Times or Times New Roman

I am not a huge fan of Comic Sans, it makes things look unprofessional and childish. It was designed for comic strip speech bubbles not as an accessible font! I'm not convinced it's more readable than an another good font despite what some websites say.

Font sizes

Font sizes below 12 point can be difficult for many to read so should be avoided if possible.

If writing a webpage ensure you code it so users can zoom the text without the formatting going completely wrong.

If you have the space, consider going up to 14 point as this can add a huge amount of extra readability and might reduce need for alternative format documents. As ever it is a bit of a judgement call cos you get less text on the page. Make your decision and consider your options.

The RNIB defines large print as 16 point or higher. I often go up to 18 if making an anticipatory large print version of our documentation.

Typesetting

How you lay out a document can be as important as what fonts you use and what content you are representing.

• For people with dyslexia or visual difficulties, providing some kind of focus point in the document rather than just blocks of text can help.
  • Tricks for this include strongly coloured bars or outlines in part of document
• Whitespace is your friend, don't cram too much into it.
• Linespacing of 1.5 can make a document easier to read.
• Blank lines between paragraphs can improve readability.
• Adding images can help with meaning, but should not be the only way of conveying information
  • Drawings should have clear and strong lines
  • Photos should be as clear as possible

Text alignment

• Left aligned text is preferred in almost all situations providing a consistent edge where each line starts.
• Centre aligned should only be used for large single line headings
• Justified has in-equal spaces between words making it harder to follow text flow.
• Right justified makes it hard for the reader to find the beginning of each new line.
• Don't indent first line of paragraphs of text - it makes it harder to find the start

• Consider use of bullet points for some pieces of information to break up blocks of text.

Alternative formats

• The RNIB defines large print as anything above 16 point.
• I usually up this to 18 if I am making an anticipatory large print document.
• The availability of large print should be declared in 16pt or larger on the regular versions of documents or on a main handbook.
• I usually try to print large print on non-white paper. Cream or pale yellow are good default colours.
• Large print documents should be provided in A4 rather than blown up to A3
  • Some visual difficulties include visual field and A3 is big and unwieldy to handle
  • Blowing up a regular print document on A4 to A3 lowers the quality of the print and should be avoided if at all possible.

If someone contacts you in advance to request large print, be honest about what you can and cannot do. So 14 point on green paper should be possible a few weeks before most events.