{"id":1789,"date":"2025-08-22T09:35:27","date_gmt":"2025-08-22T09:35:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.kcl.ac.uk\/digitaleducation\/?p=1789"},"modified":"2025-08-22T09:35:27","modified_gmt":"2025-08-22T09:35:27","slug":"digacc25-a-day-of-digital-accessibility-at-kings","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.kcl.ac.uk\/digitaleducation\/digacc25-a-day-of-digital-accessibility-at-kings\/","title":{"rendered":"DigAcc25: A Day of Digital Accessibility at King\u2019s"},"content":{"rendered":"

Introduction<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\n

DigAcc25 is a digital accessibility conference that brings together professionals from across the <\/span><\/span>UK Higher <\/span><\/span><\/span>E<\/span><\/span><\/span>ducation <\/span>sector. Since its launch in 2023, the University of Nottingham has hosted <\/span>DigAcc<\/span> annually<\/span>. T<\/span>his year\u2019s event took a distributed approach<\/span> where institutions were encouraged to <\/span>host <\/span>local events.<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

We joined in the fun at King\u2019s College <\/span>London<\/span> and I <\/span>organised<\/span> a local event where <\/span>we could watch the conference together. <\/span>On 25 June 2025, around 30 colleagues from across King\u2019s (including teams from Digital Education, IT, and EDI) came together at Waterloo campus for a day dedicated to digital accessibility. <\/span>Colleagues <\/span>may or may not have been influenced by the promise of pastries<\/span> and lunch\u2026! Thank you to Brickfield Education Labs for supplying some freebies for the day, including digital accessibility cubes (pictured <\/span><\/span><\/span>later<\/span><\/span><\/span>)<\/span><\/span><\/span>. E<\/span><\/span><\/span>ach side featur<\/span><\/span><\/span>ed<\/span><\/span><\/span> a handy reminder for <\/span><\/span><\/span>tips on improving accessibility.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\"A
A classroom of people attending Digital Accessibility 2025 in person.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Why <\/span>bring DigAcc25 to King\u2019s<\/span>?\u00a0<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\n

Whilst <\/span><\/span><\/span>King\u2019s<\/span> doesn\u2019t<\/span> yet have a dedicated digital accessibility team, there<\/span><\/span> are<\/span><\/span><\/span> many <\/span><\/span>colleagues and teams doing <\/span>great work<\/span> in their own areas. <\/span>What\u2019s<\/span> currently<\/span> missing is a space to bring those efforts together, which what I hoped DigAcc25 would help kickstart.<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I<\/span>n my role<\/span><\/span> as <\/span><\/span><\/span>a faculty Technology Enhanced Learning Manager<\/span><\/span><\/span>, I <\/span>have been <\/span>advocating for<\/span> digital accessibility <\/span>in my faculty. <\/span>This includes raising awareness through empathy<\/span>–<\/span>focused activities, delivering training for both academic and professional services staff, and carrying out<\/span><\/span>\u00a0audits<\/span><\/span> on our virtual learning environment (VLE)<\/span><\/span><\/span>. <\/span>When undertaking accessibility work, it is not unusual to feel isolated without a wider network to exchange ideas or seek advic<\/span>e<\/span>. Hosting a local DigAcc25 event was a way to bring people together, start conversations, and <\/span>hopefully <\/span>bring about changes!<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"A
Digital accessibility cubes provided by Brickfield.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Lunchtime networking<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\n

Although we were working within the structure of the DigAcc programme, I made space for a King\u2019s-only lunchtime session by shortening the scheduled 1 hour 40 minute lunch break. Potentially a risky move, but one that I think paid off! With nourishment provided by King\u2019s Food, colleagues remained fuelled up!\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The lunchtime session featured five quick-fire presentations and gave a flavour of what colleagues across King\u2019s are working on:<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

    \n
  • I kicked things off with a quick overview of the work the Technology Enhanced Learning (TEL) team has been doing in The Dickson Poon School of Law, and posed a question to the room about the European Accessibility Act, which came into force on 28 June 2025.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
      \n
    • Fiona Strawbridge (Director of Digital Education) set the scene on where digital accessibility currently stands at King\u2019s and encouraged everyone to share ideas from the day.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
        \n
      • Alistair McWiggan (Curriculum and Digital Innovation) gave a demo of the work he\u2019s doing to create accessible <\/span>courses and <\/span>resources on the distance learning <\/span>programmes<\/span> and <\/span>mobile-responsiveness<\/span> for the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience (IoPPN).<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
          \n
        • Jemma Adams (EDI Manager \u2013 Disability Inclusion) introduced everyone to the work their team does, and reminded us that digital accessibility is just as important for staff as it is for students.<\/span>
          \n<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
            \n
          • Dan O\u2019Meara (Digital Education Manager) shared insights from a recent <\/span>VLE <\/span>audit for the Faculty of Natural, Mathematical and Engineering Sciences (NMES) and walked us through the results.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
            \"A
            People attending a presentation on an audit of the VLE for a faculty.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

            Highlights<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\n

            For me, the highlight of the day was sharing a space with colleagues where digital accessibility was at the<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>heart <\/span>of the agenda. It was refreshing to be surrounded by colleagues who care about making our digital spaces at King\u2019s more inclusive.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

            Talks that stood out to me included sessions on how to bring accessibility into procurement processes and how other institutions have involved<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>neurodiver<\/span>gent <\/span>and disabled students in their <\/span>VLE<\/span> testing. I also appreciated talks on how emotional connection can help people understand why digital accessibility matters, and hearing how other institutions have approached accessibility audits. These latter areas are things we\u2019ve been working on in my faculty, so it was encouraging to know we\u2019re on the right track.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

            I <\/span><\/span>gathered<\/span><\/span><\/span> feedback<\/span><\/span> after our local event to hear what people\u2019s highlights were. A majority of those who responded said they valued the chance to connect with others working on similar accessibility challenges. One <\/span>colleague<\/span> shared:<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

              \n
            • \u201cIt was great to connect with peers and think through different approaches and ways to tackle what can sometimes seem like an insurmountable challenge. And the recognition that we are all working on this, together, is very heartening.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

              Others highlighted the value of the lunchtime event and the chance to hear from and network with King\u2019s colleagues:<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

                \n
              • \u201cI enjoyed the lunchtime talks the most, as it was wonderful to hear what my colleagues at King’s were doing to improve the accessibility of our online resources and workplace!\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n
              • \u201cDefinitely the networking element and the lunch talks \u2026 it was so great to get a better idea of the people engaged in digital accessibility in King’s and what this looks like in this context.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
                \"A
                A classroom with people attending the Accessibility in Procurement presentation.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

                What\u2019s next for digital accessibility at King\u2019s?<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\n

                The main takeaway is that we need more time and space to come together, share ideas, and keep the momentum going. Event planning isn\u2019t my fort\u00e9 but I\u2019m glad King\u2019s colleagues were keen to be involved and make the event a success.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

                As a result of DigAcc25, I\u2019m setting up a digital accessibility community at King\u2019s. This will be a space where anyone with an interest in digital accessibility can share resources, ask questions, and hopefully learn from each other. Get in touch if you\u2019d like to be part of it!<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

                The feedback from the day also included suggestions for incorporating accessibility into life at King\u2019s. These ideas will be shared with senior leadership, and I hope we can shift from working in our silos to a more joined up approach. As quoted from the DigAcc25 \u201cWelcome\u201d, it\u2019s time for us to become \u201ccollective voices instead of individual advocates\u201d. Watch this space!<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

                Thank to you to the DigAcc25 team at The University of Nottingham for putting the conference together and to all the colleagues at King\u2019s who joined our local event.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

                About you the author<\/span><\/h3>\n

                Clare Thompson is the Technology Enhanced Learning Manager for The Dickson Poon School of Law, King\u2019s College London.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

                \"Clare<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

                Introduction\u00a0 DigAcc25 is a digital accessibility conference that brings together professionals from across the UK Higher Education sector. Since its launch in 2023, the University of Nottingham has hosted DigAcc annually. This year\u2019s event took a distributed approach where institutions were encouraged to host local events.\u00a0 We joined in the fun at King\u2019s College London […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":661,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[157,13,15],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1789","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-accessibility","category-pedagogy","category-technologies","without-featured-image"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kcl.ac.uk\/digitaleducation\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1789","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kcl.ac.uk\/digitaleducation\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kcl.ac.uk\/digitaleducation\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kcl.ac.uk\/digitaleducation\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/661"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kcl.ac.uk\/digitaleducation\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1789"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kcl.ac.uk\/digitaleducation\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1789\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1801,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kcl.ac.uk\/digitaleducation\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1789\/revisions\/1801"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kcl.ac.uk\/digitaleducation\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1789"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kcl.ac.uk\/digitaleducation\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1789"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kcl.ac.uk\/digitaleducation\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1789"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}