Practical checks for content, controls, and current accessibility standards
Accessible theme design starts with the tasks a visitor needs to complete: reading a page, following navigation, selecting a control, or signing in. WCAG 2.2 provides a framework for examining those tasks. A theme review, a WordPress development commitment, and a legal requirement each describe a different part of the picture.
The GOV.UK overview of WCAG 2.2 describes four principles: perceivable, operable, understandable, and robust. Thirteen guidelines support those principles, with specific success criteria beneath them. Use the principles to organize a review, then examine the relevant criteria rather than deciding accessibility from appearance alone.
For a theme, start by asking how a visitor reads the content, reaches the controls, and understands what happens next. GOV.UK highlights enlarged text, visible keyboard focus, predictable features, and alternatives to interactions such as dragging. These are useful prompts for a practical review because they turn a broad design goal into observable tasks. Its overview explains the framework; the full guidelines provide the complete requirements.
Work through a real page rather than reviewing only a screenshot. GOV.UK's guidance suggests the following checks:
Keep notes in terms of the task and the obstacle: which control was hard to find, which content could not be read, or which action required dragging. This gives the review a concrete starting point. Repeat the relevant checks after changing layout or styling, with particular attention to the controls that visitors need to complete the page's main task.
The WordPress accessibility coding standards state a commitment to all WCAG 2.2 Level A and Level AA guidelines. They describe Level A as addressing widespread barriers and Level AA as addressing further common needs. This is WordPress's development commitment; it provides context for evaluating an interface rather than a certification of a particular theme or finished website.
The standards also encourage authoring interfaces that help people make accessible content, including choices for alternative text, captions, and semantic structure. Review the material entered into a theme alongside the theme's controls. A useful review asks both whether the editing interface supports accessible choices and whether the finished content uses those choices well.
The WordPress theme review handbook explains that the accessibility-ready tag follows a manual review against the theme review team's minimum standards. Developers can request this optional review as part of a theme submission or later for an existing theme. The handbook encourages exceeding the requirements for the tag.
The tag does not establish WCAG AA conformance. The handbook explains that WCAG also measures content accessibility, which a theme alone cannot establish. Treat the tag as information about that theme review, and keep reviewing the actual pages and their content. A directory label and a review of the visitor's complete experience answer different questions; both should be read in their proper scope.
AccessibleEU identifies 28 June 2025 as the date the European Accessibility Act came into effect. The European Commission overview describes it as a directive addressing barriers caused by differing accessibility rules across Member States. It lists e-commerce, banking services, and e-books among the covered products and services, alongside computers and smartphones. Member States had to incorporate it into national law by June 2022.
When considering a website, identify the product or service involved before using these summaries to frame the next questions. Keep the service's requirements, the theme's review status, and the content's accessibility separate in your notes. Neither an accessibility-ready label nor a WordPress coding commitment demonstrates that a service meets the Act's requirements.
WordPress 6.8 release notes report more than 100 accessibility fixes and enhancements, including work on bundled themes, navigation management, the Customizer, and labeling. WordPress 6.9 release notes report more than 30 accessibility fixes, including screen reader announcements and typing focus. WordPress 7.1 added functions for accessible tooltips in administration areas, including post meta boxes and the login screen.
These release details describe improvements in WordPress itself. Use them to understand the editing environment while continuing to examine the finished page. For a manageable review, return to the same visitor tasks after an interface change: read enlarged content, follow keyboard focus, select controls, and complete interactions without relying on dragging.