As part of a volunteer initiative with Scottish Tech Army, I lead the design of a website for a charity dedicated to supporting adults with learning disabilities. This project involves creating an accessible and user-friendly online platform that effectively represents the charity's mission and services. The website design is completed, and is currently in development.
Prior to me joining this project, another volunteer had already conducted exploratory research with service users. We used this research to inform our design approach.
The charity is led by service-users, through their Service Alliance group. As such, it was important that this ethos was reflected in the structure of the web design. Service Users are the primary users, and parents/carers, volunteers & potential contractors are secondary users. This is also in line with the charities ethos of giving their service users dignity and autonomy through work experiences.
After meeting with the user researcher to review findings, I created new user flows to address changed requirements and better explain the website structure to the client. This process informed the development of a new site map, with a focus on creating accessible navigation for adults with learning disabilities. In alignment with the charity's philosophy, the website prioritizes service users and potential service users as the primary audience, while also accommodating secondary users such as parents, carers, volunteers, and contractors.
The wireframing phase involved translating the site map into visual layouts, collaborating closely with the client to refine website content and establish key features. This process allowed us to align on the core messaging for each page, ensuring a cohesive and purposeful design that met both user needs and client objectives.
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To bring the wireframes to life, I developed a comprehensive design system based on frequently used components. This system served as the foundation for creating high-fidelity prototypes, allowing me to enhance both the visual appeal and accessibility of the website.
I conducted usability testing with 6 service users (adults with learning disabilities) at the charity's location. The testing involved walk-through tasks with think-aloud protocols. We faced several challenges during testing, including a limited time frame and participants with varying levels of literacy and digital skills. Some users required more guidance than initially planned, and the limitations of Figma prototypes meant we couldn't implement accessibility tools during testing.
Based on the feedback received, we made several improvements including revising copy and icons, adjusting the placement of key sections like contact information, providing guidance for the charity's contracted photographer, and adding a "service alliance group" in the staff section to emphasize the charity's user-led approach.
Initially I had signed up for this project as a UX Designer, not as the UX Lead. As the project grew in complexity, I took on this responsibility as I was the more experienced designer. Clarifying project scope & roles prior to getting started would have allowed for more efficiency. The project manager also had to recruit a developer for this project after we had finished the design, but as the design had grown increasingly complex, this proved difficult. Involving a developer from the start would have prevented this. This was my first experience conducting usability testing with adults with learning disabilities, which presented two main challenges:
1. Testing Participants had varying levels of literacy. Allowing for this with 2-3 different scripts would have provided more insights. Including a variation where I walked the participant through the website and asked their opinion as I went along would have been adviseable.
2. Figma does not allow testing with accesibility tools. This presented issues in user testing, as particpants could not use tools they relied on to navigate the web.
