Spreadsheets can easily be made much more accessible if individual data areas or tables are contained in separate worksheets. This has the benefit of significantly aiding navigation especially where each worksheet is given a meaningful name rather than the defaults generally provided by spreadsheet software.
Making the most of worksheets
Effective use of worksheets can help to make even complex spreadsheets easier to navigate and understand. This is of benefit to all users and not just those using access software.
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Each worksheet should ideally contain just one table. New tables should be created on separate worksheets to aid navigation and understanding.
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Break down complex data sets into logical tables ideally within their own worksheets.
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Give your worksheets logical names. Screen reader software will announce the name of the worksheet as the spreadsheet is navigated.
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Delete any blank worksheets from your spreadsheet. These can cause confusion where users cannot immediately see that they contain no information.
What about headers and footers?
Whilst most screen reader software can access headers and footers on worksheets unfortunately you cannot assume that speech software users will automatically check these areas. If important information such as phone numbers and email addresses is only contained within a header or footer it could well be missed altogether!
Headers and footers are not spoken by screen readers unless selected by the user. Therefore, where headers and footers are used you could consider duplicating any important information in the worksheet area or including a note on your contents page to draw attention to the information contained in the headers and footers.
Read all about it
Dividing your spreadsheet into multiple worksheets allows you to reserve the first page for information and navigation. Providing information about how your spreadsheet is organised has benefits for everyone but particularly blind and partially sighted people who cannot easily get an overview. You can:
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Reserve the first worksheet in your spreadsheet just for information and navigation.
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Include a text description of what worksheets are included, how they are laid out and what they contain.
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Create an index or list of contents which can be hyperlinked to the appropriate worksheets.
Worksheet descriptions
Descriptions can also usefully be included in the worksheets themselves. For example, text within cells can be used to explain the layout of a particular worksheet or point screen reader users to locations which may not be immediately obvious.
For example: Table 1 starts at cell A7, notes are included at cell A40 and Table 2 is situated on the worksheet labelled 'Expenses'.
As well as reading text in a cell, screen reader software can also detect and announce comments where these are supported by your spreadsheet software.
Further information on accessible spreadsheets can be found on the Design, Structure and Charts and graphs pages.