Recite Me: Providing an accessibility tool for our website visitors

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), more than a billion people (15% of the world’s population) are estimated to live with some form of disability. Little information is available in accessible formats, and many communication needs of people with disabilities are left unmet.

At Colt, we want to provide accessibility to everyone, so we’ve rolled out the Recite Me tool on our website. We want to make sure everyone gets the most out of Colt.net when they visit. Recite Me is an innovative accessibility and language toolbar, making the information on our website easily available and inclusive.

Last week marked Global Accessibility Awareness day. This annual event seeks to raise awareness of and drive conversations about digital accessibility. At Colt, we’re dedicating an entire week to raising awareness about digital access and inclusion with our employees. As a part of that, we want to explore the benefits of accessibility tools, like Recite Me, and how they help people with and without disabilities:

1. It means everyone is included
   We want to utilise inclusive technology to enable and empower everyone to connect, work and reach their full potential. Online web content removes some of the barriers to communication and interaction that can be faced in the physical world. However, without the right accessibility tools, some people won’t have equal access to information or communication. The UN Convention on the Right of Persons with Disabilities recognises access to communication and information technologies as a basic human right.
2. It covers a wide range of situations
   The concept of accessibility doesn’t just apply to people with disabilities. All users will have different needs at different times and in various circumstances. Someone’s ability to use a service could be affected by, for example, their health, location or equipment. Having Recite Me means that anyone can use it if and when they need.
3. It makes it easier to do business
   Our vision is to be the most customer-oriented business in our industry. By implementing Recite Me as an accessibility tool, we’re making it easier for our customers and partners to do business with us and access the information they need.

To access the Recite Me toolbar on Colt.net, click the ‘Accessibility’ button in the top right of each web page. This brings up a toolbar, which has a range of options for customising how the web page looks and how to access the content. Check out our video for more information.