Are your emails accessible?

Accessibility.

It’s often overlooked as a “nice to have” — in website design, application building, and in email.

It’s usually the first thing to go when a deadline looms, and it’s rarely considered a requirement when budgets are cut.

A big misconception is that accessibility is just for a few people’s benefit. When done right, it benefits everyone.

To us, accessibility means everyone can read, understand, and act on what you send.

You might work with councils, in the public sector, in a government department, or in the charity sector. In these roles especially, sending accessible emails is not just good practice — it’s essential.

What is accessibility (in email)?

At its simplest:

Can everyone — including people with disabilities — use the emails you send?

That includes people who:

• Use screen readers
• Have visual impairments
• Have cognitive or learning differences
• Rely on keyboard navigation

Accessible emails are:

• Easy to read
• Easy to navigate
• Clear in meaning

That’s it — we’re not talking about doing anything super special or clever. We’re just talking about making your emails usable.

Accessibility is more important than ever

Accessibility expectations have been rising for years, but 2026 marks a shift.

The European Accessibility Act is now coming into force across the EU.

While it doesn’t explicitly call out “email newsletters”, it does cover digital services and communications.

The implication is clear:

If your emails are part of delivering a service, they need to be accessible.

For those in other parts of the world, this builds on existing obligations around WCAG (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines).

In short, accessibility is moving from being a recommended best practice to being an expected standard.

What does this mean for your emails?

We think about this less as a compliance checklist and more about removing friction for your readers.

If someone:

• Can’t read your text
• Can’t understand your structure
• Can’t click your buttons

Then the email has failed — regardless of how snazzy it looks.

5 simple things you can improve today

Chances are you’re doing some of these already, but it’s surprising how often these core principles are overlooked or unknown.

1. Use real text (not images of text)

Screen readers often struggle to interpret images properly. It may seem tempting to put a title in a custom typeface or to embed text into an enticing visual, but doing so in email means putting your text in an image.

Put visuals in as images and put copy in as real text. Avoid combining the two in images if you want to make your emails accessible.

2. Add alt text to images

Describe what the image is for, not just what it is.

• Bad: No alt text
• Better: “An image of the park”
• Best: “A photo of the local park reopening on Saturday”

Without alt text, screen readers will either skip the image entirely or try to interpret the image as best they can — potentially misleading the reader.

3. Check your colour contrast

Light grey text on white might look nice, but it’s unreadable for many.

Aim for strong contrast. When in doubt: make the text darker and the background lighter.

This is a good example where accessibility benefits everyone — not everyone’s devices and screens are the same. What may look good on your brand-new MacBook’s retina display may not show up as you expect on a second-hand, dim, low resolution monitor in the local library.

4. Use clear, descriptive links

Avoid:

• “Click here”
• “Read more”

Instead:

• “Donate to the initiative today”
• “View bin collection dates”

Links should make sense out of context.

And yet again, this is a change that benefits everyone — it makes the email easier to scan, saves every reader time, and even helps search engines understand your content if you also share your email on the web.

5. Keep structure simple

Use:

• Short paragraphs
• Clear headings
• Logical flow

This helps both humans and assistive technologies navigate your email.

When you structure your emails with clarity, it’s like giving the reader a good map to navigate. When planning a journey you don’t want to see every single road and turn before you start, you just need the key direction and main roads — the subject line and second level headings.

Then the reader can jump in to specifics based on what they need to see more of.

Accessibility is for everyone

Accessibility isn’t about improving your emails for a few — it helps everyone with clearer writing, better structure, and stronger outcomes.

For you and your team, accessibility means making your email communications work for all.

I hope you found this helpful, and if you are doing anything more to improve the accessibility of your emails, we’d love to hear about it!