Accessible UX Redesign

A WCAG 2.1 AA-led rebuild of a public service portal that tripled usage in six months.

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usage after the WCAG-led redesign

Client: State disability council
Role: Lead UX strategist, accessibility design

Final imagery in production

At a glance

WCAG 2.1 AA conformance, audited

reduction in support-channel volume

AAA

targeted on color contrast and keyboard nav

The problem

A portal too few people could use.

A state-level disability council operated a public service portal that, ironically, had become inaccessible to a significant portion of the people it was meant to serve. Keyboard navigation broke on key flows, color contrast failed at multiple points, screen-reader hierarchy was incoherent, and the support team was fielding 3× the inbound volume of a comparable service portal because users couldn't self-serve.

Before. Focus state was visually invisible on most interactive elements.

After. Focus rings at WCAG AAA contrast, audible to screen readers, navigable end-to-end via keyboard.

The principle

Accessibility-led, not accessibility-bolted.

A common mistake: design for the “default” user, then patch for accessibility. The result is always the same. A worse experience for everyone, accessibility-conformant on paper but unusable in practice. We rebuilt the other way around. WCAG 2.1 AA was the ceiling, not the floor. We targeted AAA on color contrast and keyboard navigation specifically.

“Accessibility is not a patch. It is a design principle, applied at the start.”

Visual artifacts.

Color system audited for WCAG AA + AAA contrast in light and dark modes.

Form intake redesigned for keyboard navigation, error recovery, and screen-reader hierarchy.

Service flow restructured around the user's actual goal, not the org's internal taxonomy.

The outcome

Tripled usage. Cut support volume in half.

Usage tripled within six months. Inbound support volume dropped 47%. The portal was now self-serviceable for the constituents it was meant to serve. The redesigned portal passed external WCAG 2.1 AA audit at 100%, with AAA conformance on color contrast and keyboard navigation specifically.

The work has continued to influence subsequent state procurement standards for accessibility-led design. The engagement's artifacts are now reference materials for procurement vendors.

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usage at six months, held at month twelve

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