10 Beginner Tips for Leaflet Accessibility
The most important thing in accessibility is adapting to people’s individual needs. So this checklist isn't a replacement for a wider accessibility strategy that equips your service to do that, but I hope it can be a starting point to work towards developing one.
Because to be honest, despite the Public Sector Equality Duty, making it a legal requirement for public services to “advance equality of opportunity”, I've rarely had access to support or resources in making print materials like leaflets, posters and letters accessible and I know I’m not alone in that.
I developed this checklist to share with colleagues in community roles where creating information and promotional materials for our projects or events meant doing our best with Microsoft Word and the office printer.
So if you're in a similar position, I hope this checklist is helpful whilst you keep urging your leadership team to invest in a meaningful accessibility strategy.
I know accessibility can be an overwhelmingly complex topic if your service is new to it, so I’d recommend taking a look at the Accessible Information Standard (2016) (AIS) as a less intimidating place to start. It gives clear and practical guidance on meeting people’s access needs for information and communication.
“The Accessible Information Standard sets out a specific, consistent approach to identifying, recording, flagging, sharing and meeting the information and communication support needs of patients, service users, carers and parents with a disability, impairment or sensory loss.”
It’s a legal requirement for public-funded health and care services, but arguably just adds clear instructions for following the part of the Equality Act (2010) - which applies to everyone - that states people should not be at a disadvantage when using your service because of a disability. For example, if people with a learning disability or sight or hearing impairment are put at an unfair disadvantage when trying to use your service because your information or ways of communicating aren’t accessible, that’s indirect discrimination already covered by the Equality Act.
The important thing to note about this checklist is that it’s only the first step on the ladder. It’s a step up from not considering accessibility at all, and if that’s where you’re starting I hope it helps you move further up the ladder. As you do, you’ll realise there is no one-size-fits-all and many of the points I’ve written here are a trade-off, because what’s accessible for some people can be inaccessible for others. The only accessible service is one that can adapt to people’s individual needs.
Simple Leaflet Checklist
Here are 10 beginner tips for making printed resources like leaflets, flyers or letters, a little bit more accessible that can be achieved with basic Microsoft Office skills:
Make your writing size 12+
Make sure all the text is at least size 12.
Font size is a good example for why it’s important to be able to tailor your documents to people’s individual needs. There’s no font size that works for everyone, some people need bigger text, some people need much smaller text, and obviously some people need a different format altogether, so when you have the opportunity, ask. But for a mass-audience document like a leaflet, where you can’t know who’s going to pick it up, size 12 text is likely to be readable for more people than tiddly widdly size 8.
Simple fonts
Choose a straightforward-looking font without twiddly bits, like Arial or Century Gothic.
Careful with colour
Make sure your writing is a very dark colour on a very light background or the other way round. The contrast probably needs to be greater than you’d think, so it’s good to check. Websites like Coolers.co will check your contrast and suggest better colours if needed. You’ll just need to find what’s called the ‘hex' code’ for the colours you’re using, so I’ve included some tips on what that is and how to find it at the bottom of this page.
Also, if you have diagrams, make sure to add written labels rather than rely on a colour code.
Thicker, matt paper
When you’re printing, avoid shiny or glossy paper. (If you're having the leaflet professionally printed ask for “uncoated” or “silk”)
Also avoid very thin or flimsy paper. (If you’re having the leaflet professionally printed ask for around “160gsm”)
This may cost a bit more than other print options, but it’ll be worth it. As well as being a bit more accessible, your leaflet will look more professional overall, will stand up to being transported to community events or popped in the post, and won’t flop around in a leaflet rack.
Easy to hold size and shape
Aim for a compact size that's easy to handle, and a layout that's easy to find your way around.
A5 size can work well, either a two-sided flyer so you only have to turn it over, or an A4 page folded in half so it opens like a book.
Use plain language
Resist the urge to write formally and professionally. Write in everyday words and straightforward sentences.
Use white space
Make sure your leaflet isn’t too crowded.
Line up your writing on the left, and use short paragraphs separated by a bit of space.
Use photos to help people understand
Use pictures that illustrate the key points you want people to understand, so that people have both the words and images to make sense of what you’re saying.
Real photos are better than drawings. You can find free photos on Unsplash, including the Centre for Ageing Better’s image library.
Make common accessible formats at the same time
Find out what accessible formats or translations people are most likely to need for this leaflet, and make them available at the same time.
Be sure to think about what information in the leaflet might need to change, bearing in mind the access needs you’re adapting the leaflet for. For example, if you’re translating the leaflet into another language, let people know how to get in touch in that language and what to expect. There’s no sense translating a leaflet with your organisation’s phone number if your team aren’t ready to take calls in that language. Make sure you’ve got a way to connect people to an interpreter, and then include info about that in your leaflet.
Share a Word Doc with colleagues to adapt as needed
Keep a simple Word document of the plain text and important images from the leaflet ready to adapt to whatever format is needed.
Pop it somewhere anyone in your team can access, like on your intranet if you have one. That way, any colleague can adapt it when they need to. For example, printing a copy in larger text or on coloured paper, or sending it to a professional translation service.
Bonus Tip: Finding the Hex Code of a colour you want to use in Canva or MS Word
Colour menu in Canva (desktop)
Canva
To find your hex code in Canva, open the colours menu (click something in your design that’s the colour you want to use, then look for a little square of that colour in the top left of the screen, and click that).
Click the little square of colour you want to use, and this little box will come up (See screenshot).
The hex code is underneath the colour picker, so you can copy and paste that into a website to check your colour contrast.
Font colour menu in MS Word (Office 365)
Word
To find your hex code in MS Word, make your text the colour you want to check, and then go back into the font colour menu and click “more colours” at the bottom (screenshot 1).
Another little menu (screenshot 2) will come up allowing you to select from a wider range of colours. What it looks like might depend on your version of word, but it will usually show the hex code. If yours looks different to my screenshot, look for a text box with 6 letters or numbers. That’s the hex code, and you can copy and paste it into a website to check the colour contrast.
Custom colours menu in MS Word (Office 365). The hex code is in the bottom left.
