British Standard on Web Access: Headstar Exclusive Gains National Recognition

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E-Access Bulletin was the first to learn in February that work had begun on the development of a full British Standard for developing accessible websites.

The move followed the publication by the British Standards Institution (BSi) in March 2006 of initial guidance known as a 'PAS' or 'Publicly Available Specification'. This was 'PAS 78: a guide to good practice in commissioning accessible websites'.

The new standard will relate to procurement or development of accessible websites. It will not set out the technical requirements of accessibility, but will outline a process developers can follow to ensure they are taking all the right actions to make their websites and services as inclusive as possible. In an exclusive interview with E-Access Bulletin, BSi technical committee chair elect Julie Howell said BSi would like the standard to be based on PAS78 but she is also keen to widen it to embrace some of the new types of web service such as social networking. The standard is likely to be published in the first quarter of 2009, Howell said.

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