Context
Irish Life is Ireland’s No. 1 life assurance, pensions and investment management business. It is part of the Great-West Lifeco group, and is the chosen partner for 28 of the 30 largest multinational employers based in Ireland.
I took a lead role in bringing Irish Life’s web projects into compliance with the European Accessibility Act.
Problem
With the European Accessibility Act requiring Irish Life’s websites and legacy portals to be accessible by mid-2025, it became clear that they needed an overhaul to meet the EAA’s standards. Key challenges included:
Live legacy issues: Older portals and sites had critical interaction issues.
Lack of awareness of accessibility issues: There were evident gaps in knowledge across all relevant teams.
Inaccessible code: The long lifespan of Irish Life’s portals meant that much inaccessible code had crept in.
Solution
Education
I completed the Interaction Design Foundation’s course on Accessibility, receiving a 1st certificate.
Upskilling colleagues
Through conversations and research, I identified gaps in knowledge across the business. To close those gaps, I gave presentations and ran workshops for developers, QA testers and more on the following topics:
- Introduction to WCAG and its accessibility standards
- Understanding the requirements of the European Accessibility Act
- How to use screen readers and navigate with assistive devices
- How to write accessible code, from page heading structure to ARIA attributes.
Keyboard navigation
I audited the website & portal navigation, investigating whether they were fully accessible via keyboard. A user with physical impairments should be able to move seamlessly through Irish Life’s portals without relying on a mouse.
Improved colour contrast and visual design
I worked closely with other designers across the business to ensure that their designs met WCAG’s AA standards. I also revisited the Brand’s colour palette to maximise readability for users with low vision or color blindness.
Plugins and browser extensions
I pushed to allow relevant browser extensions and plugins be installed for developers, designers and QA testers. This included WAVE, Axe DevTools and more. I also ensured all designers used Figma plugins such as Contrast and Stark to make their designs accessible.
Screen reader optimisation
I audited our portals and sites using screen readers on Windows, iOS and Android devices. I instructed developers and QA testers on how to use screen readers. I ensured that testing for screen readers is now part of the QA process.
Outcomes
- On track for European Accessibility Act compliance: Irish Life is on track to meet and exceed the EAA’s requirements.
- Solving accessibility issues: From user testing, we have received positive feedback from users with visual impairments and those who use assistive devices to interact with our portals.
- Improved UX for all users: Surveys have shown an increase in ease-of-use scores from all our users, coinciding with the company addressing its accessibility issues.
- Improved institutional knowledge: All staff-members who I have interacted with on this project have expressed an increased appreciation for accessibility issues both online and in the outside world.