Accessibility Statement

Whelan Web Design is committed to making its website accessible, in line with the European Accessibility Act (Directive (EU) 2019/882) as implemented in Ireland by S.I. No. 636/2023.

This accessibility statement applies to whelanwebdesign.com.

Compliance status

This website is partially conformant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2 Level AA. “Partially conformant” means that most of the standard has been met, but some parts have not yet been brought fully into line — those parts are listed below.

A substantial programme of accessibility work has recently been completed. Every page was tested and the following were identified and corrected:

  • Keyboard access to the menu. The main navigation can now be opened, operated and closed using only a keyboard. Previously it could not be reached by keyboard at all on phones and tablets.
  • Control over moving content. A control in the header pauses all moving content — image carousels, looping videos and scrolling graphics — and remembers that choice. Motion is paused automatically for anyone whose device asks for reduced motion.
  • Names for controls. Buttons and links that previously announced nothing to a screen reader now identify themselves, including the search button and the image links in article and portfolio listings.
  • Image descriptions. Every image on the site was reviewed individually. Images that carry information now have a text description; images that are purely decorative are explicitly marked as decorative so screen readers skip them rather than announcing a filename or a meaningless label. No image on the site is missing a description attribute.
  • Decorative illustrations. The icon illustrations drawn directly in the page code are now explicitly marked as decorative, so assistive technology skips them instead of announcing them as unlabelled graphics.
  • Article content and its structure. Article bodies that were not being displayed at all are now published, with section headings marked up as headings so a screen reader can list and jump between the sections of an article. Screenshots inside articles now carry descriptions of what they show.
  • Heading structure. Headings were restructured so pages can be navigated by heading level, which is how many screen reader users move through a page.
  • Card links. Article and portfolio cards previously offered the same destination as three separate links — image, title and button. The redundant ones are now skipped, so each card announces one link.
  • Colour contrast. Text and interface colours were adjusted to meet the required contrast ratios, including on dark sections and gradient backgrounds where the correction had to be applied in the opposite direction, and including the hover states of links and icons, which automated tools cannot test.
  • Target sizes. Small controls, such as carousel dots, were enlarged to meet the minimum target size.
  • Form field purpose. Form fields now identify their purpose, so browsers and assistive technologies can fill them in automatically.
  • Visible focus. A clearly visible focus outline was added, so keyboard users can always see where they are on the page.
  • Closing dropdown menus. The menu panels that open over the page can now be closed with the Escape key, without having to move the mouse or tab past them.
  • Page structure. Every page has a correctly identified main content region and a skip link that jumps straight to it.

Non-accessible content

1. Non-compliance with the accessibility requirements

We are not currently aware of any content on this website that fails to meet WCAG 2.2 Level AA. The site has been assessed by automated testing of every page, manual keyboard testing, manual measurement of colour contrast, manual testing with a screen reader, and manual checks of the success criteria that automated tools cannot evaluate. Every issue those found has been corrected.

We describe the site as partially rather than fully conformant because screen reader testing so far covers one screen reader on one operating system. Testing with additional assistive technologies is planned, and we will update this statement — including the conformance status — when that is complete.

If you find a barrier we have not listed, please tell us using the contact details below.

2. Disproportionate burden

We are not currently claiming that any part of this website would place a disproportionate burden on us to make accessible.

3. Content outside the scope of the regulations

  • Links that open in a new tab. Some links open in a new browser tab without warning in advance. This relates to WCAG success criterion 3.2.5, which is Level AAA and therefore outside the Level AA standard we are measured against, but we intend to address it.
  • Third-party content. Where content is provided by third parties that we do not control or fund, we cannot guarantee its accessibility.

Preparation of this statement

This statement was prepared on 26/08/2026.

The assessment was carried out by Ireland Website Design using a combination of:

  • automated testing of every page on the site (132 pages) using axe-core, covering the WCAG 2.0, 2.1 and 2.2 Level A and Level AA rule sets, which returned no violations;
  • manual investigation of every result the automated tool could not decide by itself, including measuring the rendered text and background colours of gradient-filled headings and text on gradient backgrounds, and inspecting the audio tracks of all 52 video files on the site;
  • an individual review of all 461 distinct images used across the site, deciding for each whether it carries information or is decorative;
  • a full re-crawl of all 132 pages to confirm each correction is present on the served pages, rather than only in the working copy;
  • manual keyboard testing of the navigation, forms and interactive components;
  • manual verification of colour contrast, text resizing to 200%, reflow at 320 pixels width, and text spacing overrides;
  • manual testing with the VoiceOver screen reader, covering the skip link, landmark and heading navigation, the menu and its submenus, forms and error messages, carousels and accordions;
  • manual checks of the Level AA criteria that automated tools cannot evaluate at all, including whether hover and focus panels can be dismissed, whether the fixed header ever covers the item being tabbed to, whether visible button text appears in each control’s accessible name, and whether status messages are announced;
  • code review of the website theme.

Automated testing can only detect a proportion of accessibility issues, which is why the assessment also included manual keyboard and screen reader testing.

This statement was last reviewed on 26/08/2026.

Formal approval of this statement

This accessibility statement is approved by Whelan Web Design.

Technical specifications

Accessibility of this website relies on the following technologies working with your browser and any assistive technologies you use:

  • HTML
  • WAI-ARIA
  • CSS
  • JavaScript

Feedback and contact information

We welcome feedback on the accessibility of this website. If you come across a barrier, or you need information from this site in a different format, please contact us:

  • Email: info@whelanwebdesign.com

We aim to respond to accessibility feedback within 5 working days.

Enforcement procedure

If you contact us with a complaint about the accessibility of this website and you are not satisfied with our response, you can contact the Commission for Communications Regulation (ComReg), which serves as the Compliance Authority for the EAA in Ireland.

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