What is structure?
The structure of a document is the way the content is organised. In order to structure a document we need to apply in-built headings and styles. This is one of the key things to do to a document to make sure it is accessible, especially if it is a longer document.
Why do it?
When we read documents, especially longer ones, we don't read them from start to finish, we tend to start by scanning the content to find where we want to go to, and we use main section headings and sub-headings to do this.
People who use a screen reader, or those who are unable to use a mouse, want to be able to navigate a document in the same way. This type of navigation can be done using keyboard shortcuts or tabbing through a menu on a screen reader. The structure in a document can provide this navigation so all users can quickly get to the content they need without scrolling or having to read word for word.
However this can only work if the document is set up with a structure correctly.
How to do it
A structure means adding headings such as Heading 1, Heading 2 and Heading 3. Adding these creates a map or navigation menu of headings and sub-headings for screen readers to follow.
SCULPT by Helen Wilson is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. Based on work at Worcestershire County Council.