What to change
Ask your supplier to preserve each value's relationship to its row and column, including when the table is read aloud or viewed on a phone.
A worked example
Illustrative example
A visitor reading a fee comparison hears the relevant service and column heading alongside each amount, rather than a string of unexplained figures.
Why this matters to your practice
A table is useful only when people can tell what each number or phrase refers to. Row names and column headings provide that relationship. Ask your supplier to demonstrate a real comparison table using spoken navigation, then check it on a narrow screen. Reception or the relevant practice lead should verify that the relationships remain accurate. A visually tidy grid is not enough if a visitor hears a value without knowing its service, branch or other context.
A practical review example
A comparison may list several branches against opening or contact details. A visitor moving directly to one value needs to know which branch and which detail it describes. Ask your supplier to demonstrate those relationships through reading software and a narrow layout. Your operational team should verify that the associations are correct. Neatly aligned cells can still lose their meaning outside the visual grid, so the review should follow an actual comparison question rather than simply confirm that the table looks orderly.
How to check the result
Accept when every meaningful cell can be interpreted from its associated headings in both wide and narrow presentations.
A mistake to avoid
Adding bold text to the first row makes a table look structured but does not establish usable relationships for accessibility tools.
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.
Record what you know, what is still missing and the answer you need from your team or supplier.
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.
Further reading
These sources provide background for the topic. The practice examples and checklist are illustrative planning suggestions from Kay & Co.
Related guides
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