Henshaws College, part of Henshaws Society for blind people, has launched an accessible version of YouTube. Funded by Jisc, the UK’s powerhouse for digital technology for education and research, it allows people with learning difficulties and disabilities to use YouTube independently.

18 months in development, ACCESS: YouTube simplifies the standard YouTube site making it easier to search and play videos, and allows the use of assistive technologies. It is now publicly available so everyone can benefit from this accessible method.

ACCESS: YouTube uses large fonts, visual cues and a logical layout to improve access using assistive technologies. By simplifying the site and removing content such as adverts and comments, the website is more accessible to screen readers.

For more information go to the JISC site.