The European Accessibility Act 2025: An internet for all

Written by Bailey Bryan - January 27, 2025

Most countries’ government websites already prioritise accessibility, however the European Union is ensuring its usability doesn’t just stop at government websites, many product and service websites will be affected too. 

As of 28th June 2025, the European Accessibility Act 2025 comes into effect requiring any business that is trading, or plans to trade, in the EU needs to provide accessible digital services. This also affects UK businesses that provide services to EU consumers and to public or private bodies that are in the scope.

Why does web accessibility matter?

Our founder, Tom Greenwood, described this clearly when writing about the public sector accessibility regulations for the UK in 2019. Succinctly, it comes down to the fact “a huge part of our world is now online, if we don’t take accessibility seriously then people with disabilities will be excluded, creating a two-tiered society.

What do the European Accessibility Act 2025 regulations require?

The Design for All (DfA) approach is a design philosophy for products, services and systems to have maximum usability by as many people as possible without the need for adaptation. This philosophy was responsible for the development of the European Standard on Design for All, published in 2019. In the same year the European Accessibility Act (EAA) was officially published by the European Union.

The regulations are not new as such, but the deadline for implementing them, June 28 2025 is now fast approaching. 

So what are the key requirements for websites?

  • Depending on which EU country is involved, websites must at least meet WCAG 2.1 compliance at level AA. Ensuring that websites are WCAG 2.2 compliant at level AA is a more prudent, robust and future proof approach.
  • Non-text content such as images, videos and products must have associated alternative text providing clear, simple descriptions for screen reading technology .
  • All parts of the website should be usable with just keyboard navigation.
  • Audio and video, must be accompanied by captions or transcriptions and offer alternative formats. Auto play of videos should be avoided.
  • Adaptable website design so it can be adjusted to suit different needs, such as changing text size or colours for better readability.

Accessibility is not a feature, it is a universal human right

Universal design isn’t new or novel. The result of designing for additional needs, benefits everyone, sometimes in ways we couldn’t have predicted.

  • The dropped curb? Originally created to assist wheelchair users, also benefits people pushing a pram, shopping trolley, or suitcase.
  • The electric toothbrush? Designed for those who lacked the movement or dexterity to brush thoroughly, and now many people own one as it can clean your teeth more effectively.
  • The world wide web? Yup! Even in its inception, the inventor of the world wide web, Tim Burner’s Lee created it with universal design in mind. He stated: “The power of the Web is in its universality. Access by everyone regardless of disability is an essential aspect”.

The above are three examples of things we all benefit from frequently, if not daily. 

When the web was launched, it prioritised universal accessibility. However, when you release things into the public domain, you lose control of how people adapt it. Legislation and laws are often required to maintain our universal human rights, especially as we continually iterate and improve our digital platforms.

Happily there are many people and organisations who took it upon themselves to make sure this knowledge is shared and accessible to drive change sooner. Here are a handful of those improving accessibility through education, community alliances and free tools:

  • WCAG 1.0 was published in 1999 and 26 years on WCAG 3 is fast approaching;
    • You can evaluate WCAG standards for webpages with WAVE.
    • Reminder! For the EAA 2025, as a minimum, websites must meet WCAG 2.1 compliance at level AA.
  • The A11y Project is a community-driven effort to make digital accessibility easier as well as providing a list of resources.
  • Web Sustainability Guidelines which was created by the W3C Sustainable Web Design community group. Designing for not only audience needs, but data & WiFi bandwidth means that no one is hindered from information or interactions online based on data inequality.
  • WebAIM colour contrast checker is a useful, free tool to validate colour combinations in design.
  • Accessibility Insights is a free browser extension to test accessibility of webpages and web applications.

Wholegrain supports all moves that increase inclusion online

We’re encouraged that accessibility protections are written into law and continually iterated. However for us, accessibility online has always been and continues to be non-negotiable, meaning anything we create is done through the lens of universally accessible digital design.

We’ll keep doing what we’re already doing, putting the human behind the screen, first.

When we design with accessibility in mind, we’re creating experiences that are not only compliant but also intuitive and enjoyable for everyone.

This is exactly why we prioritise user testing because without representation, we can never truly understand how to create a fully inclusive digital experience.

From a UX standpoint, accessibility is intertwined with usability. When we design with accessibility in mind, we’re creating experiences that are not only compliant but also intuitive and enjoyable for everyone. Accessibility means removing barriers for people with disabilities, but it also enhances the experience for all.

For example, clear navigation and logical content hierarchy improve usability for those using screen readers, while also benefiting people in noisy environments or those unfamiliar with a website. Captioning videos helps people with hearing impairments but also supports those watching content in quiet spaces. Keyboard navigation is essential for people with mobility challenges and it also improves efficiency for those who prefer shortcuts.

Designing for accessibility encourages empathy, helping us focus on the diverse ways people interact with the web. It ensures that we’re building websites that are not just functional but delightful and impactful, reinforcing trust and inclusivity. For Wholegrain, accessibility isn’t a box to tick, it’s an integral part of creating human-centered, sustainable digital experiences that serve everyone.

It’s important to restate our mission to frame our position on accessibility:

“Our mission is to create the best websites in the world, use our business as a force for good, and help to accelerate the shift to an Internet that’s good for people and planet.”

Sustainable web design is accessible design.

In a world that is increasingly prioritising algorithms and non-human users, we stand strong in putting the people using a website front and centre. Through collaboration, we can uncover usability we’d never discover on our own, that discovery may even benefit you one day!