Hon Michelle Lensink MLC

Minister for Human Services

Friday 17 May 2019

State Government strengthens its commitment to providing

accessible digital services for all South Australians
The State Government is launching a new online accessibility policy, and online toolkit, to
assist all South Australian organisations to create more accessible, digital platforms.
The policy and toolkit have been developed in consultation with Vision Australia, Royal
Society for the Blind (SA), people with lived experience with disability and other key
stakeholders in the disability sector.
Minister for Human Services Michelle Lensink said it is critical government websites are
developed to ensure everyone in the community can easily access them and no one is left
behind.
“It is vital that online content is accessible for those most in need and is also helps
breakdown barriers for people with disability and allows them to participate independently in
the community,” said Minister Lensink.
The new policy will help a range of people including:

• A person with vision impairment who requires a screen reader to navigate or

contribute to a web page

• Older people with age-related challenges

• People with temporary incapacities such as a broken arm or lost glasses
• People using a slow internet connection or those who have limited or expensive
bandwidth
• People using internet devices that may not be running the latest software versions
The new toolkit gives users practical tips to improve online accessibility for everyone,
including:
• Visual design – having enough contrast between the text and its background colour

• Language – making sure language is in plain English and easy to understand

• Formatting – using the right heading styles and descriptive hyperlinks to ensure a
screen reader can navigate the text in order

• Video and audio content – using captions and transcripts, so users have the option
to read instead of listen, or to translate into other languages

Media Contact: Katrina Stokes 0481 903 371

 • Images – adding a caption and text behind the image to ensure if it’s unable to be
viewed, users can understand what is in the image

Minister Lensink said the new toolkit would be made available to all organisations to use,
including local government, private enterprise and the not-for-profit sector.
“I encourage all organisations across South Australia to review their website content and
make use of these free resources to help improve access for everyone,” said Minister
Lensink.
“The co-design of this policy and toolkit is another example of the State Government’s
commitment to ensure people with disability have the leading role in shaping policies and
creating programs which influence their lives.”
Vision Australia’s National Manager of Digital Access, Neil King said: “It’s great to see the
State Government taking a leadership position and creating a toolkit that will assist all
South Australian organisations to think about how they develop digitally accessible
platforms.
“We support more than 25,500 people across Australia who are blind or have low vision
and we’re confident this toolkit and more accessible digital platforms will help those people
achieve the possibilities that they choose in life.”
To view the new online accessibility policy and toolkit, visit accessibility.sa.gov.au.

Media Contact: Katrina Stokes 0481 903 371