BT teams up with AbilityNet to launch ‘Including You’

02/03/2011

New website dedicated to supporting people who need extra help with communications

BT has launched ‘Including You’ (www.bt.com/includingyou), a new website offering a range of accessible products and services for those who need extra help with communications.

Designed and developed in conjunction with AbilityNet, the national charity that enables people with disabilities to access technology and the internet, the site is the first to achieve the new AbilityNet accreditation mark. Only businesses whose web presence observes and maintains accessibility best practice will be awarded the instantly recognisable logo, of which BT is the first.

Including You builds on the existing accessibility web pages on www.bt.com by integrating in one place helpful products and services, along with the latest news, advice and information to make communications easier for everyone, whatever their need to use their home phone and the internet. Key features of the website include:

British Sign Language content embedded in the site
Browsealoud software - for those with visual impairment and people with reading issues such as dyslexia which highlights and reads text aloud as you run your mouse over it
Livechat - for hearing impaired people
a ‘jargon buster’
easy to follow, bite-size courses covering topics such as online shopping, using an internet browser and a search engine and sending emails.

Robin Christopherson, AbilityNet’s head of Digital Inclusion, said: "We are thrilled to have worked with BT and for www.bt.com/includingyou to receive the first AbilityNet accreditation logo. The mark is a clear indication that a site is inclusive and, having been extensively tested by disabled end users, offers ‘real life accessibility’ to everyone."

Warren Buckley, managing director of Customer Service for BT Retail, said: "BT has a longstanding history of providing ICT-related services that help tackle digital exclusion and we are committed to helping our customers overcome communication challenges wherever possible. Our new Including You website combines this extensive experience with the latest in accessible design to help customers whatever their needs get the most out of communications."

BT has continuously worked since 2002 to tackle the digital divide, by bringing the benefits of ICT to disadvantaged communities across the UK. Last year, the company invested £26.4 million in programmes that ranged from supporting BT volunteers working in schools and community organisations to working with organisations such as Age UK to help get older people online and become part of digital society. BT is also leading partner of Race Online 2012, the national campaign led by the UK's Digital Champion, Martha Lane Fox, to get everyone in the UK online by the Olympic year.

In October, BT launched ‘Get IT Together’, a campaign aimed at making it easier for people to help friends or family members get online. These resources have now been integrated into the ‘Including You’ website (www.bt.com/includingyou) and offer everything you need, from helpful tips to short tutorials designed for a helper to take an internet novice through. Those who register will be directed to online training courses designed by UK Online Centres, with whom BT is partnering on the campaign.

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