Web-based applications can be tested for maturity and accessibility compliance through adherence to the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG).
There are three levels of WCAG compliance defined by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C). From lower to higher fidelity of accessible design, these are level A, AA and AAA, respectively.
In the United Kingdom, regulations state that public sector web-applications must be accessible (interpretable as WCAG level AA-compliant).
Private sector bodies, on the other hand, should show reasonable efforts to be accessible.
These rules are governed by The Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) Accessibility Regulations 2018.
In the United States, Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act requires federal agencies to make all digital content accessible.
Failure to comply by these laws could present bodies with potential liability for discrimination.
As such, a checklist for maturity testing can be derived from the various benchmarks for WCAG level AA-compliance.
