We have always built Convivial to WCAG 2.2 AA. Now an outside specialist has verified our work, page by page and component by component, with keyboards, screen readers and automated scanners.
What IncluD tested
The audit covered the parts of a site where accessibility usually breaks. IncluD worked through the header, footer and navigation, every component demo page, the background and motion modifiers, typography, colour palettes, search results, news listings and the contact form. Interactive pieces such as tabs, accordions, sliders, charts, maps, the lightbox and the decision flow all got close attention.
Testing combined two methods:
- Manual expert testing of keyboard operation, focus behaviour, screen reader output, content structure, form interactions, accessible names and error handling. These are the things a scanner cannot judge.
- Automated scanning for colour contrast, semantic structure and ARIA errors. An accessibility specialist reviewed every automated result before it counted as a finding.
The audit ran in two rounds. The first round identified issues against specific WCAG success criteria. We fixed them, then IncluD came back for a Verify audit to confirm each fix and run fresh automated scans across all 52 pages to catch anything new. The first round found three issues. Each one was remediated so that the site passed all criteria.
Why this matters for agencies
Government websites have to work for everyone. The DTA's Digital Inclusion Standard asks agencies to make services accessible, and WCAG 2.2 AA is the level agencies are expected to meet. Behind both sits the Disability Discrimination Act.
Most accessibility problems live in shared components, not in individual pages. A lightbox that traps focus fails on every page that uses it. Fix it once in Convivial and every site built on Convivial gets the fix. That is the real value of a tested starter site: agencies inherit a baseline that has already been through expert review, instead of paying to find and fix the same problems project by project.
A strong start to a site build
The audit confirms that Convivial's components and templates meet WCAG 2.2 AA as tested. It does not make every site built on Convivial conformant by default. Your content, colour choices, configuration and any custom features can still introduce barriers. It is advisable to have every site tested before going live to make sure no errors have crept in during development or content creation.
For each project, Morpht ensures quality by designing and testing accessibility at each stage. During development, we:
- run automated accessibility checks in our CI/CD pipeline to catch regressions before release
- test new or changed interactive components manually, with keyboard and screen reader
- review accessibility as part of our go-live checklist
- train editors to publish accessible content, from alt text and link text to headings and documents
The result is a site that starts from an audited foundation and stays accessible as it grows.
You can explore every audited component at govcms.convivial.io. If you are planning a GovCMS build or rebuild, you can get in touch, and we will walk you through it.
