Non-Profits and Digital Accessibility
Non-profit organizations play an essential role in French society. Their online presence is indispensable for communication, fundraising, and volunteer recruitment. Legally, non-profits with delegated public service missions or significant public funding are subject to RGAA. For all others, accessibility is an ethical imperative.
Making a Non-Profit Website Accessible on a Budget
The initial CMS choice is critical: WordPress with the Twenty Twenty-Four theme is accessible by default and free. Static sites (Hugo, Jekyll) are naturally accessible with good structure. The most impactful free fixes include adding alt text, using heading structure, checking contrast, adding form labels, and keyboard testing.
Accessible Online Donations
The donation page must feature amount buttons as radio inputs in a fieldset, explicit free-amount labels, text-based tax deduction information, accessible payment forms (Stripe Elements), and accessible confirmation pages with email receipts.
Accessible Membership Forms
Break forms into logical sections with fieldset/legend, use explicit labels, indicate required fields in text, and provide descriptive error messages linked to relevant fields.
Free Tools for Non-Profits
Essential free tools include RGAA Test for automated audits, WAVE for visual error detection, Colour Contrast Analyser, NVDA screen reader, HeadingsMap for heading hierarchy, and axe DevTools browser extension.
Digital accessibility is not reserved for organizations with large budgets. With the right tools and practices, a non-profit can make its website accessible at no cost.