We pride ourselves on going the extra mile for our members. A critical part of our customer service strategy is ensuring all of our members can access and engage with our services in a barrier-free way that best suits their needs.
Approximately 13 million people in the UK have a disability which may prevent them from reading online content. As part of our ongoing work on diversity and inclusion, supporting vulnerable customers, and the forthcoming Consumer Duty regulation from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), we are pleased to launch Recite Me's digital accessibility tools on www.newbury.co.uk.
The internet can be an incredibly intimidating place for those with access barriers, and those lacking the tools they need to adequately understand or communicate are at a significant disadvantage. The Recite Me toolbar includes:
- Screen reading functionality
- Multiple reading aids
- Customisable styling options
- Live translation for 100 languages, including 65 text-to-speech and styling options.
Being able to offer an inclusive experience is essential to support over 20% of the population who may encounter barriers when exploring our website due to having a disability, learning difficulty, visual impairment or English as a second language. Our website users can now utilise a range of tools to read, interact with, and understand our online content - creating an inclusive online environment for all.
We are excited to launch the Recite Me toolbar, which will enable all of our members to fully engage with the support and information on our website. It's absolutely critical to us that our customers are able to engage with us in ways that suit them and help them to feel included, and the Recite Me toolbar is one of the ways in which we can achieve this.
Ross Linnett, Recite Me’s Founder and CEO commented, “It is important to provide an inclusive online experience, where everyone can use our digital world in a way which best suits their needs. As more organisations provide accessibility tools online, those who face online barriers can access information and services hassle-free. The digital world must be accessible for all.”
To open and explore the new toolbar, click on the button at the bottom left-hand corner of your screen that looks like a stick figure in a circle. To find out more about Recite Me, visit their website.
Your feedback
As always, we welcome your feedback on our services - whether positive or negative. If you'd like to give us your thoughts on the Recite Me toolbar, please email marketing@newbury.co.uk.
Emma is responsible for the marketing communications and public relations for the Society.
