Make deeper menu choices easy to back out of

What to change

Ask the supplier to name each menu level and give visitors a clear route back to its parent or out of the menu entirely.

A worked example

Illustrative example

A visitor inside Services then Rehabilitation sees that context and can return to Services without closing the menu and rebuilding the path.

Healthcare website design showing connected desktop and mobile service and enquiry layouts. — Make the service and next step clear on every screen.

Healthcare website accessibility illustrated by a focus outline, keyboard key, contrast samples and form. — Review keyboard access, contrast and understandable form fields.

Why this matters to your practice

A menu with several levels needs to keep reminding visitors where they are. Otherwise, a person exploring services can lose track of which branch or category they opened. Ask for clear level names and a return action that says where it goes. Review the deepest real menu route with your supplier, then move back one level at a time. Decide whether reopening the menu starts afresh or retains the previous place, and make that behaviour consistent.

A practical review example

A person opening Services, then a subgroup, should still know which choices they are viewing. An unlabelled arrow may mean back one level, return to the previous page or close everything. Ask your supplier to show the deepest mobile menu and explain each return control from the visitor's perspective. Try reopening the menu after closing it at that depth. Whether it remembers the place or starts again, its behaviour should be consistent and easy to recognise.

How to check the result

Accept when every level identifies itself and provides working routes both to its parent and out of navigation.

A mistake to avoid

Using an unlabelled arrow for every return action leaves visitors guessing whether it means parent, previous page or close.

Turn reading into a next step

Your action checklist

Work through these checks with your team or supplier. Tick the ones you have resolved and leave unknowns open.

Checks to discussOpen the deepest mobile navigation branch and inspect its heading and return control. Identify which parent the return action will reveal before using it.Navigate down and back up with a keyboard. Ask the supplier to demonstrate the focus destination and how a screen reader (software that reads the page aloud) distinguishes each panel.Close the entire menu from a deep level and reopen it. Check whether the chosen reset or retained state is understandable and consistent.

Your answers and notes

Record what you know, what is still missing and the answer you need from your team or supplier.

What happens next, and who will do it?

Use project decisions only, without personal, patient or confidential details. Entries stay in this page and are not submitted to Kay & Co. Copy or download before leaving; this page does not save your notes.

Related guides

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