At this year’s Learning Technologies Conference, Gemma Nunn, Head of Learning Design at Mint, teamed up with Helen Bailey, Strategic Technical Adviser at Intellum, to explore something that’s about to become a key priority for learning teams.

They began the seminar by presenting a somewhat relatable scenario to the audience:

“You’ve been asked to redesign a course to make it accessible. You’ve got the content - but where do you begin? What standards do you follow? Is there a checklist?”

That set the tone for a lively and practical discussion about accessibility and how L&D teams can confidently tackle it using the Evolve Authoring Tool, supported by emerging AI solutions.

But why is this such a pressing topic right now?

Enter the European Accessibility Act (EAA)

The EAA is effective from 28th June 2025, and it’s set to raise the bar for how digital learning is designed and delivered across Europe.

The act requires service providers, including those creating digital learning, to ensure their content is accessible to everyone, including those using screen readers, keyboard navigation, and mobile devices.

They pointed out that the act applies to commercial services provided at a distance. So, if learning content lives on an LMS, sits behind a login screen, or is delivered via a website or app - it likely falls under the scope.

The key takeaway is clear: if you work with businesses based in EU member countries, your learning content should be as accessible as possible - not just to meet legal requirements but because inclusive design makes for better learning experiences for everyone.

Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG)

After discussing why accessibility matters, the conversation shifted to how teams can design learning experiences that work for everyone.

This is where WCAG comes in. For those unfamiliar with the term, it’s a set of internationally recognised guidelines aimed at making web content accessible to all users.

Gemma and Helen explained that WCAG is built around four key principles:

Perceivable: content needs to be visible or audible to all users
Operable: users should be able to navigate using different methods, like keyboards
Understandable: content should be clear and easy to follow
Robust: it should work well with assistive tech, like screen readers

Together, these are known as the POUR principles.

Why we recommend the Evolve Authoring Tool

Accessibility shouldn’t be an afterthought. It should be considered from the start, right alongside your learning objectives.

While the team at Mint is tool agnostic, we often recommend the Evolve Authoring Tool for teams looking to build accessible content without sacrificing creativity or interactivity.

Here’s why the Evolve tool stands out:

Many components (static and interactive) already meet WCAG Level AA, with many aiming for AAA
ARIA labels and alt text are simple to add and can be checked using Live Preview
Keyboard operability works by default
It creates semantic page structures using Articles, Blocks and Components, improves navigation for learners using assistive technologies
It offers a wide range of accessible interactions, meaning less reliance on text-only alternatives and providing a universal learning experience for all

Get Started: 5 Practical Tips from the Mint Team

Whether you’re new to accessibility or refining existing content, here are five tips to kick off your journey:

Start with structure Use Evolve’s layout features to create clean, logical navigation early in your build process.
Don’t skip the alt text - Every image or media file should include descriptive alt text for screen readers. Decorative images should have blank alt text
Test with a keyboard - Can you navigate your course in a logical order using only the tab, enter, and arrow keys? Even though this functionality is included by Evolve by default, you should always test.
Leverage templates - Many prebuilt Evolve templates already meet WCAG standards - use them to save time. These are indicated by an icon and the label ‘accessible’.
Review and certify - Use checklists and accessibility certification tools to validate your content before publishing.

So, where does AI fit in?

Toward the end of the session, attendees were given a sneak peek into Mint Essentials - a suite of AI-powered tools currently in development at Mint.

The spotlight was on the L&D Knowledge Base tool. While still in the works, this smart assistant is designed to help developers and learning teams quickly surface answers from their own learning content.

Key features include:

The ability to ask questions via text or voice
Search across specific documents or an entire content library
Audio responses for accessible playback

When it launches, it’ll offer support on applying accessibility best practices - providing general guidance in a learning context, not just a technical one.

Anyone curious was invited to visit Stand C30 for a live preview. If you would like to see this tool in action, you can request a demo here.

One last thing…

If you're feeling overwhelmed or don't have the resources to handle accessibility in-house, don't worry! There are many experts out there (like us!) who can help you out.

We offer an accessibility auditing service where we dive deep into your content, meticulously reviewing it to identify and rectify potential accessibility barriers. You can learn more here.

We’ve got the slides ready to share!

Request them here, and you’ll get all the insights and examples from the session to help you make your learning content more accessible.

Using Accessibility & Evolve to Create Amazing AI Experiences for Learners