Accessibility Audits

A Fundamental Check on Inclusivity and Compliance

Digital accessibility is essential for creating websites and applications that can be used by everyone. This includes people who use assistive technologies, people with sensory or cognitive differences, older users, and users with varied levels of digital confidence. An accessibility audit provides a structured and expert-led review that identifies hidden barriers, checks conformance with recognised standards, and presents a clear and prioritised plan for improvement.

What an Accessibility Audit Involves

An accessibility audit is a systematic evaluation of your digital platform to understand how closely it aligns with recognised accessibility standards and how usable it is in practice. It combines automated scanning, detailed manual review and, where required, user-focused testing. This helps evaluate:

• Conformance with the W3C Web Content Accessibility Guidelines, for example WCAG 2.1 or WCAG 2.2 at Level AA

• Correct use of semantic HTML, ARIA roles and attributes, readable structure, predictable focus order and accurate label relationships

• Visual and interaction-related accessibility, for example colour contrast, text readability, responsive layout and keyboard access

• Usability considerations such as navigation clarity, form structure, error handling, layout choices and overall task flow

An audit checks more than technical compliance. It examines whether people can understand information, navigate confidently and complete tasks without unnecessary barriers.

Why Accessibility Audits Matter

• Legal and regulatory compliance. Many organisations operate under requirements that reference WCAG alignment. An audit supports compliance, reduces legal exposure and provides documentation for accessibility statements or procurement.

• Improved user experience for all users. A platform that works for screen-reader users, keyboard-only users, users with low vision, users with hearing impairments and users with cognitive differences also becomes clearer and more intuitive for everyone.

• Reduced risk and stronger reputation. Addressing accessibility early prevents complaints, supports trust and demonstrates responsibility.

• Actionable recommendations. Good audits provide clear prioritisation, severity ratings and practical guidance that supports developers, designers and content teams.

How an Audit Is Carried Out

A typical audit includes the following steps.

1. Scoping and discovery. Identify the pages, templates and user journeys that should be assessed. This focuses the audit on meaningful areas of your digital platform.

2. Automated scanning. Automated tools highlight a baseline of common issues. These tools are useful but cannot detect many real barriers.

3. Manual expert review. Accessibility specialists carry out in-depth testing using keyboard-only navigation, screen-readers, magnifiers, mobile devices and a range of browsers. This helps identify detailed or structural issues that automated tools miss.

4. Reporting and recommendations. The final report contains issue descriptions, severity levels, likely impact on different groups of users and recommended fixes.

5. Retesting and verification. Optional follow-up checks confirm whether issues have been resolved and support ongoing accessibility improvements.

Some organisations also request additional services, such as ongoing accessibility guidance, accessible content support or training for development teams.

Typical Pricing for Accessibility Audits

Audit pricing varies widely because websites differ in size, complexity and technical structure. The following examples reflect typical market ranges.

• Small-scale audit with limited pages or templates: usually £600 to £900

• Independent consultant-led WCAG 2.1 or 2.2 audit with manual review: often £2,000 to £3,500

• Audits involving multiple assistive technologies, complex components or forms: typically £3,000 to £6,000

• Enterprise-level audits with extensive manual testing and retesting: often priced on a day rate, for example £600 to £850 per day

• Public sector style audits aligned with government frameworks: usually around £4,000 to £6,000 for representative templates and structured reports

Prices depend on page count, template complexity, level of assistive technology testing, interactive behaviour, reporting depth and any retesting requirements.

Tailored Audits to Suit Your Project

Every accessibility audit can be tailored to the specific needs of your organisation. This may include budget considerations, the level of detail required or particular questions and tasks you want to explore. You can choose an expert-led audit that focuses on technical evaluation, mentoring and ad hoc support, or a more extensive audit that includes user testing with people who have different access requirements or disabilities and who use a variety of assistive technologies. This flexibility ensures the audit aligns with your goals, whether the priority is strict compliance, improved usability or a full understanding of how people with diverse needs experience your website.

Why Thorough, Human-Centred Auditing Matters

Automated scanning identifies some issues but only reveals a portion of the barriers that affect real users. Many accessibility problems are only identified through manual review. These include incorrect focus order, missing relationships between labels and inputs, confusing form behaviour, keyboard traps, ARIA misuse, unclear feedback messages and inconsistencies in dynamic or interactive content.

Human-centred auditing examines accessibility in context. It considers how users perceive information, how they move through journeys, how they recover from mistakes and how demanding or intuitive a task feels. This approach reveals practical barriers rather than theoretical ones.

A thorough accessibility audit improves inclusivity, strengthens usability and provides a clear path toward long-term improvement.

What Beyond Metrix Provides

An accessibility audit with Beyond Metrix includes:

• A tailored scoping stage that identifies representative pages, templates and key user journeys

• Automated scanning combined with detailed manual testing using assistive technologies, keyboard-only navigation and responsive checks

• A structured report with clear explanations, severity classifications, user impact and recommended fixes

• Guidance that integrates accessibility and usability, helping you improve clarity, predictability and inclusivity across your digital platform

• Optional retesting and consultancy to support remediation and maintain accessibility as your platform evolves

• Scalable audit options suitable for small sites, complex applications or large organisations

The aim is to help organisations create digital services that are accessible, usable and effective for a wide range of people.

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