Accessibility for SMBs: Why WCAG Compliance Matters and What It Means for Your Business

There are 16 million disabled people in the UK — roughly one in four of the population. Their spending power, often called the “purple pound,” is worth an estimated £274 billion a year to UK businesses. Yet 73% of disabled consumers say they encounter barriers on more than a quarter of the websites they visit. If your website isn’t accessible, you’re not just creating a frustrating experience for those visitors. You could be losing customers — and breaking the law.

Web accessibility used to feel like something only large enterprises and public sector bodies needed to worry about. That’s no longer the case. The Equality Act 2010 applies to every organisation that provides goods or services to the public, and the European Accessibility Act came into force in June 2025, extending requirements to any business selling digital products or services to EU customers. If you’re a small business with a website (and in 2026, who isn’t?), WCAG compliance deserves a spot near the top of your priority list.

This article breaks down what WCAG actually is, why it matters for your business, and what practical steps you can take to get your website up to standard — no technical background required.

What Is WCAG, and Why Should You Care?

WCAG stands for the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines. Published by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), these guidelines set the internationally recognised standard for making websites usable by people with disabilities. That includes people who are blind or have low vision, those who are deaf or hard of hearing, people with motor impairments who can’t use a mouse, and individuals with cognitive or learning disabilities.

Think of WCAG as a set of rules for building a website that works for everyone — not just people who happen to browse the way you do.

The current version is WCAG 2.2, which was released in October 2023 and became an official ISO standard in 2025. It builds on earlier versions (2.0 and 2.1) and is organised into three levels of conformance: Level A (the bare minimum), Level AA (the widely accepted standard for legal compliance), and Level AAA (the gold standard, though not achievable for all types of content). For most small businesses, Level AA is the target you should be aiming for.

At a high level, WCAG is built around four principles. Your website should be perceivable (users can see or hear your content), operable (users can navigate and interact with it), understandable (content and navigation are clear and predictable), and robust (it works reliably across different browsers and assistive technologies).

The Legal Landscape in the UK: It’s Not Just a Nice-to-Have

One of the most common misconceptions among small business owners is that web accessibility law only applies to government websites and massive corporations. The reality is quite different, and the legal landscape has tightened considerably in recent years.

The Equality Act 2010 is the primary piece of legislation that governs web accessibility for UK businesses. Under the Act, any organisation that provides goods, facilities, or services to the public has a duty to make “reasonable adjustments” so that disabled people are not placed at a substantial disadvantage. That duty extends to your website. While the Act doesn’t name WCAG explicitly, WCAG 2.2 Level AA is the widely accepted benchmark for demonstrating that you’ve taken reasonable steps.

This isn’t a theoretical risk. The Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) has brought discrimination cases against businesses with inaccessible websites, and while most have been settled out of court, the direction of travel is clear. The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) has the power to investigate non-compliant organisations, issue unlawful act notices, and pursue court proceedings. As awareness of digital accessibility grows, enforcement is only going to increase.

The Public Sector Bodies Accessibility Regulations 2018 set even stricter requirements for government and public sector websites, mandating WCAG 2.1 Level AA compliance and the publication of an accessibility statement. If you work with public sector clients, they may require your website or digital services to meet these standards as a condition of doing business.

The European Accessibility Act (EAA), which came into force on 28 June 2025, is another piece of the puzzle. Although the UK is no longer in the EU, the EAA applies to any business — regardless of where it’s based — that sells digital products or services to customers in EU member states. Non-compliance can result in fines of up to €250,000 (roughly £200,000). If any part of your customer base is in Europe, this affects you directly.

The bottom line: accessibility compliance isn’t optional anymore. Whether you’re selling online, providing information, or offering a service, your website almost certainly falls within the scope of at least one of these regulations.

Beyond Compliance: The Business Case for Accessibility

Legal risk gets the headlines, but there are compelling business reasons to invest in accessibility that go well beyond avoiding a claim.

You reach more customers. The purple pound is worth £274 billion a year, and UK businesses are estimated to lose around £2 billion every month by ignoring the needs of disabled customers. When 75% of disabled people and their families say they’ve walked away from a business because of poor accessibility, the size of the missed opportunity is hard to overstate. An inaccessible website is effectively a “closed” sign hanging in front of that entire audience.

Your SEO improves. There’s a meaningful overlap between accessibility best practices and what search engines reward. Proper heading structures, descriptive alt text on images, clean HTML markup, readable content, and fast-loading pages are all things that make your site both more accessible and more likely to rank well on Google. When you invest in accessibility, your SEO benefits as a side effect.

Your site becomes easier for everyone to use. Accessibility improvements don’t just help people with permanent disabilities. They help the person browsing on their phone in bright sunlight, the parent navigating one-handed while holding a child, and the older customer whose eyesight isn’t what it used to be. Good accessibility is, at its core, good usability.

It strengthens your brand. Consumers increasingly care about inclusivity. Demonstrating that your business takes accessibility seriously builds trust, shows that you value all customers, and differentiates you from competitors who haven’t made the effort.

What Does an Accessible Website Actually Look Like?

If you’re not a developer, WCAG can feel abstract. Here’s what accessibility looks like in practice — the kinds of things a compliant website gets right.

Images have descriptive alt text. Every meaningful image on your site should have a short text description that a screen reader can announce to a visually impaired user. If you have a photo of your team on the About page, the alt text should describe what’s in the image — not just say “photo” or be left blank.

The site is fully navigable by keyboard. Not everyone uses a mouse. Some people rely entirely on a keyboard (using the Tab key to move between links, buttons, and form fields). An accessible site ensures that every interactive element can be reached and activated without a mouse, and that the current focus is always visually obvious.

Text has sufficient colour contrast. If your brand uses light grey text on a white background, it might look sleek — but it’s nearly impossible to read for someone with low vision. WCAG requires a minimum contrast ratio of 4.5:1 for normal text and 3:1 for large text.

Forms are properly labelled. Every input field in a contact form, checkout flow, or sign-up page should have a clear, associated label. Screen readers rely on these labels to tell users what information is expected in each field.

Videos have captions. If you have video content on your site, it should include accurate captions for viewers who are deaf or hard of hearing. Auto-generated captions are a start, but they often need manual review for accuracy.

Content is structured with proper headings. Headings (H1, H2, H3) aren’t just for visual hierarchy — they serve as a navigation structure for screen reader users. A page with no headings, or headings used purely for styling, creates a frustrating experience for anyone using assistive technology.

Touch targets are large enough. For mobile users — including those with motor impairments — buttons and links need to be large enough to tap reliably. WCAG 2.2 recommends a minimum target size of 24×24 pixels.

Common Mistakes Small Businesses Make

While every website is different, certain accessibility issues come up again and again on small business sites. Knowing what to watch for can save you time and money.

Relying on accessibility overlays. These are the toolbar widgets you may have seen offering font size adjusters or contrast toggles. While they look like an easy fix, they don’t make your underlying website code accessible. Accessibility overlay vendors have faced widespread criticism from the disabled community, and no court or regulator has accepted an overlay as evidence of compliance with accessibility law. They’re a sticking plaster, not a solution.

Ignoring PDFs and documents. Your website pages might be accessible, but what about that PDF menu, pricing sheet, or downloadable guide? Documents published on your site need to be accessible too — that means tagged PDFs with a proper reading order, not just scanned images of printed pages.

Assuming a modern template means you’re compliant. Many website builders and CMS themes market themselves as “accessible” or “WCAG compliant.” While some do a solid job of providing a good baseline, no template can guarantee compliance on its own. The content you add — images without alt text, videos without captions, poorly structured text — can introduce barriers that the template can’t prevent.

Treating accessibility as a one-off project. Accessibility isn’t something you “finish.” Every time you add a new page, publish a blog post, upload an image, or update your product listings, you need to ensure the new content meets accessibility standards. It needs to be part of your ongoing workflow, not a box you tick once.

How to Get Started: Practical Steps for Your Business

Getting your website to WCAG Level AA compliance doesn’t have to be overwhelming. Here’s a sensible approach that works for businesses of any size.

Start with an audit. Before you fix anything, you need to know where you stand. A professional accessibility audit will evaluate your site against WCAG criteria and give you a clear picture of what needs attention. Automated tools can catch some issues (like missing alt text or low contrast), but a thorough audit also requires manual testing — particularly for keyboard navigation and screen reader compatibility.

Prioritise high-impact issues first. You don’t need to fix everything at once. Focus on the pages and elements that affect the most users: your homepage, main navigation, contact forms, and any checkout or booking flows. Fix critical barriers (like content that’s completely inaccessible to keyboard users) before moving on to refinements.

Build accessibility into your process. Train anyone who adds content to your website — whether that’s you, a marketing coordinator, or a content writer — on the basics: adding alt text, using headings properly, ensuring link text is descriptive, and checking colour contrast. Accessibility should be part of how you create content, not an afterthought.

Test with real users when you can. Automated tools and expert reviews are valuable, but there’s no substitute for watching someone who uses a screen reader or keyboard navigate your site. Even informal usability testing with disabled users can reveal issues that technical audits miss.

Partner with a web team that understands accessibility. If you work with a web designer or developer, make sure accessibility is part of the conversation from the start — not something bolted on at the end. The cost of building an accessible site from the ground up is far lower than retrofitting an existing one, and the results are better.

What Happens If You Don’t Comply?

The consequences of ignoring web accessibility range from uncomfortable to severe.

Legal action. Under the Equality Act 2010, disabled individuals can bring a claim against your business if they’ve been placed at a substantial disadvantage by an inaccessible website. Cases brought by organisations like the RNIB have resulted in out-of-court settlements, and the EHRC has the power to take formal enforcement action. If you sell to EU customers, the EAA introduces fines of up to €250,000. As case law develops, the risk of litigation is only growing.

Lost revenue. UK businesses lose an estimated £2 billion a month by failing to meet the needs of disabled customers. If a potential customer can’t use your website, they’ll go to a competitor who has a site that works for them. You’ll never know how many sales you lost because your checkout flow was inaccessible or your product descriptions couldn’t be read by a screen reader.

Reputational damage. In the age of social media, a public accessibility complaint or legal claim can draw unwanted attention. On the other hand, proactively investing in accessibility can generate goodwill and positive coverage.

Start Where You Are

If your website isn’t accessible today, you’re in good company — most small business websites have room for improvement. The important thing is to start making progress. An imperfect website that’s actively being improved is in a far better position than one that’s never been audited.

Web accessibility isn’t just a legal checkbox. It’s a commitment to treating every visitor as a valued customer, and it’s an investment that pays dividends in better search rankings, a wider audience, stronger brand trust, and a website that simply works better for everyone.

If you’re not sure where your site stands, a professional accessibility audit is the best first step. It gives you a clear roadmap, helps you prioritise your efforts, and means you’re making decisions based on evidence rather than guesswork.

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Get in touch with our team to schedule a no-obligation accessibility review of your website — we’ll show you exactly where you stand and what it’ll take to get you where you need to be.

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