Balance menopause support app now fully accessible for all

App now screen reader and voice control compatible, and compliant with accessibility best practices

The balance menopause support app is now fully accessible for all.

The latest release of our award-winning app improves accessibility for people who rely on their phone’s assistive technologies, such as those with visual or hearing impairment, restricted mobility, neurodiversity, or other disabilities.

What’s new on the balance app?

The release is the culmination of a five-month project which has included rigorous testing by a panel of more than 40 volunteers.

Balance is now compatible with the following features:

• screen reader compatibility
• voice control compatibility
• subtitles on all video content
• font scaling from your native device settings
• consistency across all screen layouts and forms.

We’ve followed best practice guidance to ensure balance is accessible as possible, including the BBC Accessibility Guidelines and The Web Accessibility Initiative.

The verdict from the balance accessibility testing panel

The release has been tested externally by people who rely on assistive technologies to use their device, and have lived experience with an impairment, disability or neurodiversity. Some existing balance users also volunteered to help with the project.

Findings included:

• 100% of testers said the accessibility and ease of use of the app was ‘better’ or ‘about the same’ compared with other apps
• two thirds (67%) of testers rated the app installation and set-up experience as 5/5, while 33% rated it 4/5
• when asked to rate the likeliness of recommending balance to a friend, 67% of testers said 5/5, and 33% said 4/5
• when asked how much the app helps them achieve their goals, 67% of testers said 5/5, and 33% said 4/5.

And here’s a selection of comments from our panel of testers:

‘Thank you for arranging for me to test the Balance app.  I have been using it with VoiceOver and it works great…before you and your team worked on it, I couldn’t even sign up because I couldn’t press the button to move on from the first page, so thank you!’

‘Thank you for improving the lives of millions of us who want to use the balance app but previously haven’t been able to without sighted help.’

 ‘I like the look and feel. The colours are restful, the font is readable and not too small.’

Hopes that balance will improve users’ lives

Caroline Roberts-Garth, balance Product Manager, said: ‘This is something that I’m hugely passionate about and is so important in the digital world – It’s so easy for people to forget that things that are simple to them can be a real challenge for those living with a disability or neurodiversity.

‘I hope this release will help improve the lives of many who previously were unable to access the support and information on the app, and that other apps and businesses will follow suit.’

Balance COO Gaele Lalahy said: ‘From day one the balance app has put users needs front and centre of every single development we have released in order to, one by one, overcome the hurdles that women face in accessing menopause information, diagnosis and treatment.

Our accessibility release is the latest in the list of requests from our users demonstrating our untiring efforts to make evidence-based medical information about the menopause and the perimenopause accessible and inclusive to all.’