Introduction
Hyperlinks must be presented in a specific way to be considered accessible. The web address (URL) for your link must never be written out in full. You must always describe the link using normal language, and link that text to the destination you want it to go to.
When thinking about a text description for your link consider what website and page you are linking to. Try to be brief but specific. For example, if you are linking to the ‘Jobs and Careers’ page of the Somerset Council website, your description would be the “Somerset Council Jobs and Careers page”.
Inaccessible link examples
- “For more information visit https://somerset.gov.uk” – this example is underlined but not linked, and does not use an accessible text description
- “For more information visit https://somerset.gov.uk” – this example is linked properly but does not use an accessible text description
- “For more information click here” – this example is linked properly, but the text description does not explain where it links to
Accessible link example
“For more information visit the Somerset Council website.” – this example is linked properly and uses an accessible text description.
Why it matters
Assistive technology will read an inaccessible link out as letters and words, for example “H T T P S colon backslash backslash…” and so on. This is extremely frustrating to listen to. It takes a long time and can make the address very hard to understand, especially if it is a long or complicated link.
It is also much harder for sighted users to read and understand, especially if they are Dyslexic or have a learning difficulty.
Some assistive technology users will navigate the document by asking it to read out just the links. This takes them out of the context of the sentence they were part of, which is why the linked text itself must be descriptive.
How to do it
To add a hyperlink your text:
- Write the link description
- Select the words using your mouse or keyboard
- Click the ‘Insert/edit link’ icon on the Content Block ribbon, or press Alt+k on your keyboard
- A box will appear which will say ‘Paste URL or type to search’
- Type the name of the page you want to link to. This will only find pages within the site you are building the page or article on.
- Write or paste the link web address in the URL field
- Once you have chosen what to link to or added the address, click the blue return arrow button
Outlook links
When pasting a URL make sure you are using the proper web address for the site you want to link to, not an Outlook link, as this can prevent customers from being able to open the link properly. Outlook links usually start with “https://eur01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com”.
Sharepoint links
When adding Sharepoint links do not copy the URL from the address bar of your browser, use the ‘Share’ button and copy the link from there. You can check the permissions of the link by clicking the cog icon.