Accessibility

Accessibility Statement

BGC Canada is committed to making our programmes and web resources available and accessible to children and youth in our communities, as well as to our volunteers, community supporters, and visitors.

We’ve worked hard to make sure our web site is easy to use, interactive, and accessible to everyone including those who visit our site using mobile and tablet devices as well as those navigating the site using the keyboard only or with assistive devices such as screen readers.

What We’ve Done to Make our Web Site More Accessible

Consistent Site Structure and Layout

We’ve taken care to ensure the site has a simple and consistent structure, so visitors will be able to easily understand and navigate through all pages on the site.

Each page includes 3 main site areas:

Header with main navigation
Main content area
Footer

When navigating with the keyboard or using a screen reader, the 3 areas appear or are read in the above order.

Keyboard Navigation

The site has been designed to be navigable by keyboard. Visitors can navigate using a combination of the tab key and keyboard arrows to move through the site without the use of a mouse or trackpad. When navigating through the links and input form fields using the tab key, the element that has keyboard focus is highlighted visually with a visible highlight around the element.

Note: Some screen readers will have other key combinations used for navigating the site via the keyboard, and the site was designed to be keyboard accessible for screen readers as well.

Note for Mac/Safari Users: Keyboard navigation does not work by default in Safari. See Apple Support for details on enabling keyboard navigation: Full Keyboard Navigation

Described Images

For images where the content of the image will add additional context or enhance your understanding of the site, we’ve added alternative text. These descriptions (alternative text attributes) replace the information that would be conveyed by images for visitors using screen readers or when the images are turned off.

When the images are decorative only or if an image description would only duplicate content already available as text, we have hidden those images from screen readers or when images are turned off.

Use of Colour

The web site does not include content or functionality which relies on colour alone to convey key information.

Links

We’ve worked to ensure that the purpose of all links on the site is clear so you will know where each link goes before you click on it. Whenever possible, the link destination will be clear from both the link or button text and the content immediately above where the link appears.

Wherever the link or button text may not be easily understood out of context, we’ve added a ‘title tag’, ’label’ or other accessible markup to provide additional context for those visiting the site using assistive devices.

Forms

To improve site accessibility for visitors using using screen readers who may not be able to see the form ‘placeholder content’ in input forms or buttons, we have added extra markup accessible to screen readers to ensure labels and form instructions are accessible.

Additional Accessibility Features

Skip to Content

The first link on each page is a ‘skip to content’ link. This feature lets visitors skip repeated content at the beginning of each page (such as the header items and navigation) and go straight to the main page content.

Screen Reader Only Labels and Instructions

When needed to add extra context user instructions and information helpful to visitors using screen readers, we have added additional labeling and instructions available for screen readers only.

External Links and PDFs

Some documents on the site are in PDF format which will open in a new browser window. You will need Adobe Acrobat Reader to be able to open PDF files. Adobe’s free reader includes support for screen readers to read PDF documents. You can download the reader free from Adobe: Download Adobe Acrobat Reader (external link) (URL to link to https://get.adobe.com/reader/)

Accessible CAPTCHAs

We have added CAPTCHAs to some of our forms. CAPTCHAs are used to ensure that forms are being filled in by human beings and not robots by requesting that before submitting the form, the site visitor complete basic tasks that cannot be easily replicated by bots. CAPTCHA are typically difficult to make fully accessible. To improve form accessibility, we’ve chosen to use a CAPTCHA designed with accessibility in mind that includes an option to use an audio test rather than a visual one.

Accessibility Barriers

Some of our content and site functionality is dependent on external formats, tools, or plugins that enhance the overall functionality and available features on the site but do have some barriers to accessibility.

We have worked to make sure valuable features on our site, such as social share links and the home page video, are keyboard accessible and provide a valuable experience to as wide an audience as possible. However, we are not yet able to ensure a fully accessible experience.

In particular, we have identified some accessibility issues with the Find Your Club form for screen reader users. As an interim solution, we have provided additional messaging in a screen reader accessible format that offers additional support in finding a Club.

We are aware of these issues and continue to work towards full accessibility for all content and functionality used on our site.

In the meantime, if you have questions or are having trouble accessing information about our programs, finding a BGC in your local area, or making a donation, please contact BGC Canada’s office by email at bgcc_communications@bgccan.com or by phone at 905-477-7272 and we will be happy to assist you.

Contact Us

We are committed to providing the best possible online experience for our site visitors. We welcome your feedback and questions, as well as recommendations for improving our site.