Do I need a PDF document?

When creating digital content first ask yourself, do I really need this content in a PDF format? HTML web pages are the most accessible and responsive way to display digital content. It's also the easiest and quickest way to create accessible digital content. Where possible please use HTML web pages to display content.

PDF documents can be helpful if you need information to be shared in a downloadable format or secure document. 

If you are not sure please consult with the Digital Team who will be happy to advise.

Creating accessible PDFs

Training

If your content needs to be a PDF, please complete this SiteImprove training course before creating a PDF that will be shared with external audiences:

The training course will take about half an hour to complete. You can retake the course as many times as you need to. When you have completed the course and the brief assessment you should be clear on accessibility requirements for PDFs.

The course is provided through SiteImprove. Contact the Digital Team for access to your training course if you don't have Site Improve access set up, otherwise, log in with your Site Improve username and password.

Alternative Text Descriptions

It is an important part of all accessibility to be able to write sufficient alternative text for your images, tables, and figures. Please complete the accessibility training if you have not done so already.

Further information on understanding the importance and fundamentals of accessibility can be found in our Content Accessibility Guide.

Designing a PDF document

The Digital Team has resources to help you design a professional document. Please contact us by raising a Sales Force case with your design request.

If you need to create a document yourself please use the approved software applications that are supported by the Digital Team and use the templates and brand colour pallets provided. Alternatives should be checked with the Digital Team before creation begins. Please ensure you are familiar with our brand guidelines, make use of logos correctly, and use CIWF font Frutiger.

If you need to use an agency to design your document, (please check with the digital team first before outsourcing), provide the agency with our brand guidelines and fonts. You must also request that the document they create is accessible to at least AA accessibility standards. If using non-CIWF branded colour pallets, please have them checked with the Digital Team before creation begins.

Please refer agencies to our guidance page:

Checklist

This is a helpful checklist to keep in mind when creating your PDF document or outsourcing the creation work:

• Follow brand guidelines on logo use and use CIWF font Frutiger. Use brand/campaign colours/colour palettes.
• Body text needs to be min 16px or 12pts (footnotes can be 14px or 10.5pts). 
• Add alt text to all images, tables, figures and graphics (description or mark as decorative if not illustrating anything).
• Add legible photo credits where required
• Nest headings correctly.
• Do not run headings/text on their sides vertically. If this is desired as a design element and only if it's non-informative text make it an image so screen readers are not confused.
• Do not design content using tables and nested tables or leave table cells empty. This confuses screen readers.
• Do not design the document in double-page spreads for digital consumption. Single pages are required for digital and should be in portrait format.
• Check colour contrast meets accessibility AA. standards. Particularly when text is overlaid on a coloured background or photo.
• If the document is large add a clickable content list or table of bookmarks.
• Use a screen reader to read the document back to you and check the reading order.
• Make sure the document is tagged.
• Send the PDF for accessibility checking to the Digital Team in good time ahead of launching.
• Do not flatten the PDF when exporting it and do not export/save for print.
• Ensure the document is not more than 2MB in size

Creating an accessible document in a word processor

When creating word documents that will later be turned into PDF’s use the accessibility checker to check through content and follow the tips presented. Practice the advice below and use the checker which can be set to auto-check documents.

Images and tables

• Add alt text in the format image area or format table area.
• Do not use text overlaid on an image.
• Use simple table structures and specify column header information by using table headers.

Hyperlinks

• Add meaningful hyperlink text.
• Use underline and compassion green colour to make links stand out.
• Do not use words like “Click Here” as the word link. Use descriptive words that tell the user what they will be taken to. e.g "read more about good husbandry practices"

Styles

• San Serif fonts such as Frutiger or Montserrat make for easier reading on digital devices. Reference CIWF style guide.
• Ensure there is sufficient contrast between text colour and background. Use accessible text colour. Reference the CIWF style guide.
• Include headings and subheads to make copy content navigable. Apply built-in heading styles.
• Don’t skip heading levels. There should only be one H1 on the cover page/top of page 1. Then an H2, H3 in order. You can have H2 then and H3 and then go back to H2 and another H2 then an H2 and an H3, H4 for example.
• Make content easy to scan for information. Used frequently with screen readers. - Use bullets or ordered lists from the list styles in the toolbar.

Review the accessibility of your Word document

Once your document has been created following the guidelines above check the document for any areas of accessibility improvements. To do this, in the toolbar along the top, click on Review / Check Accessibility.

A pop out toolbar will appear on the right-hand side listing areas that need attention. Check the box "Keep accessibility checker running while I work" for prompts as you work in your document.

Saving your document

• Select export to or save as PDF. DO NOT select “Print To PDF” this removes alt tags, formatting, etc, and turns the document into an image. This link shows different saving options for different versions of word.
• Newer versions of Word allow you to use Acrobat Ribbon which has a preference setting of “enable accessibility” which you would want to be turned on.

When saving your document to PDF format open the document in a Desktop application, don't open it in the browser.

Check the pdf document is accessible

Accessible PDFS will have the following features:

• Contain tags: alt text on images and tables, figures, and hyperlinks
• Contain searchable text: a document that consists of scanned images of text is not accessible and will not be able to be read by screen readers. Use OCR to convert scanned images of text into a readable document.
• Reading order and document structure: apply styles, tags, and headings to tables to allow screen readings to make sense of the content.
• Searchable and navigable content: using lists, headings, bookmarks, linked table of contents.
• Specified language: specify the document language so screen readers know what language to read the document in.
• Correct security settings: check security restrictions don’t interfere with the assistive technology

Acrobat

It is recommended practice to use Acrobat to create, convert or check accessible PDF’s making use of the accessibility tools and following the principles outlined above.

Accessibility Checker 33 point checklist

First, run the "Accessibility Checker" found in the left-hand toolbar. Under "All Tools" select the "Accessibility Checker" item. Click "View More" link at the bottom of the menu if you don't see it in the list initially. When the checker has finished running checks, the 33-point checklist appears on the left-hand side listing points passed or failed.

Look through the 33-point checklist for accessibility issues in the document. Many issues can be fixed by simply right-clicking on the issue and selecting "Fix" from the checker list on the right-hand side.

Tagging Issues

If the document is missing tags, select the "Automatically Tag The PDF" tagging feature from the "Prepare For Accessibility" sub-menu of the Accessibility Checker tool.

Re-run the accessibility checker again after tagging is completed.

Reading Order

Manually check the reading order using the tools recommended or your preferred reader.

If there are issues, select the reading order icon from the right-hand menu. Drag and drop the out-of-order elements into the correct place.

Metadata

Add metadata: fill in the title, author, subject, and keywords fields within the "Menu/Document Properties/Description" area. Include the language the document is written in within the keywords field. Keywords should be separated by a comma and a space. In the “Advanced” section at the bottom of the popup check the tagged section says “yes”.

Check table headers

Assign table headers: manually check table headers. Each table row (TR) should contain at least one table header (TH) that represents the data in the cells (TD) in each column.

• How to correct tagged form fields
• How to correctly identify and fix table header and data cells
• How to fix a "regularity" error on tables

Images and figures alternative text

Missing alternative text will be flagged in the 33-point checklist and can be corrected using the "fix" option described above, alternatively access the menu feature from the icon in the left-hand menu. Alternative description tags should be descriptive but brief (up to 140 characters) and should describe the who, what and where of the image. For decorative images tick the check-box that describes the image as "decorative".

Fonts and text size

Check fonts used in the document by going to "Menu > Document Properties > Fonts Tab". If you are not sure if the fonts used are accessible please contact the Digital Team for advice.

Use the "Edit" menu and text tool to highlight different pieces of text to ensure the minimum size requirements for AA accessibility are being met.  Body text is min 16px or 12pts (footnotes can be 14px or 10.5pts). Adobe Acrobat displays font size in Pts. 

Links

Manually check through the document to ensure all hyperlinks are working. Please note: urls wrapping on more than one line will sometimes break.

Adding Bookmarks

If required, add "Bookmarks" for documents with multiple articles to allow users to get to the content they want quickly. Refer to the Adobe Support pages on Bookmarks for directions.

Articles Panel

Use the "Article Panel" to group related content together such as images with related copy. This can help with the reading flow of a document using columns and illustrative images. Refer to the Adobe Support pages on Article Panels for directions.

Avoid losing work by saving regularly when making edits.

Finally, once you think you have made your document accessible, manually test the document by opening it with a screen reader. Turn off your monitor or look away from the screen while the reader works through the document and check that it is conveyed in the order and way you want it to be conveyed.

When you are happy and have checked the document yourself and with at least one other person in your team, send it to Digital Team for accessibility checking at least 3 working days ahead of publishing.