Accessibility
Accessibility statement
We want everyone to be able to run a conference, submit a paper, review, register and find their way around the programme with Conference Desk, however they use a screen.
Prepared 27 October 2026. Last reviewed 27 October 2026.
What this statement covers
- this website, conferencedesk.app;
- the organisers’ dashboard and sign-in pages at app.conferencedesk.app;
- the Conference Desk app for iPhone and iPad;
- hosted conference pages at conferencedesk.app/c/.
Each conference’s own content, such as its description, logo, programme text and uploaded files, is written by its organiser. We set the layout and checks around it, but the organiser is responsible for the content itself.
The standard we aim for
We build to the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2 at level AA. In practice that means you should be able to:
- use every page and form with a keyboard alone, with a visible focus;
- use a screen reader such as VoiceOver or NVDA, with labelled fields, headings in order and described images;
- zoom text to 200% and use a narrow screen without losing content;
- read text that is at least 14 pixels and meets WCAG contrast ratios;
- turn off animation through your device’s reduced-motion setting.
Organisers choose their conference colours, and we adjust them automatically where needed so that text on hosted pages and in the app keeps a contrast ratio of at least 4.5 to 1.
How well we meet it
We believe Conference Desk is partly compliant with WCAG 2.2 AA. We have not yet had an independent audit. The known issues are below.
Known issues
- Security check: sign-up and request forms use Cloudflare Turnstile. It usually completes without any action, but if it asks for one and you cannot complete it, email us and we will set you up another way.
- Large tables in the dashboard: the review and registration tables can need sideways scrolling on narrow screens and at high zoom.
- Files uploaded to a conference: papers, posters and documents that authors or organisers upload, such as PDFs, may not be accessible. We do not change them.
- Logos and descriptions on hosted pages: a logo is described by the conference name; any text inside the logo image is not read out.
- Android: there is no Android app yet. The website and dashboard work in browsers on Android.
How we test
- Automated tests check every page of this website for one main heading per page, labelled form fields, a minimum text size, and no scripts that would bypass our security policy.
- Manual checks with a keyboard, and with VoiceOver on macOS and iOS, on the main tasks: signing up, creating a conference, submitting, reviewing and registering.
- Colour contrast checks for our own colours, and automatic checks for every organiser’s colours.
- Checks at 200% zoom, at phone width, and with reduced motion turned on.
Tell us about a problem
If something does not work for you, or you need information in a different format, email [email protected]. Tell us the page or screen and what you were trying to do. We reply within two working days and aim to fix problems, or offer another way to do the task, as quickly as we can.
If the problem is with a particular conference’s content, we will pass your message to its organiser.
If you are not happy with our response, you can contact the Equality Advisory and Support Service at equalityadvisoryservice.com.
Keeping this statement up to date
We review this statement whenever we make a significant change, and at least once a year. The next review is due by October 2027.