Sector(s)
Team Members
Project Team
guenole : lead developer
axdep : back-end developer
bilal : front-end developer
c-linn : front-end developer
maxpah : technical architect
flemaitre : project manager
Visit the site
Visit the siteOrganizations Involved
Community contributions
Improve accessibility of paragraphs administration : add h3 around title
Who is the Association Valentin Haüy?
Founded in 1889 by Maurice de La Sizeranne, the French Association Valentin Haüy (AVH) deploys actions and services to defend the rights of the visually impaired people, ensure their training and access to employment, restore and develop their autonomy, promote access to the written word and offer accessible cultural, sporting and leisure activities. It has been recognized as a charitable organization since 1891.
Context
In 2023, the priorities of the Association Valentin Haüy evolved to better meet the needs of visually impaired and blind people. Emphasis has been placed on enhanced day-to-day support, professional integration in promising sectors, as well as training and rehabilitation.
Another major challenge is digital accessibility, in line with the requirements of the 2005 French Disability Act.
[Did you know? Less than 10% of websites are currently accessible to visually impaired users].
Objectives
The association decided to adopt an ambitious communications strategy, based in particular on a complete overhaul of its corporate website. In 2023, AVH's digital ecosystem included 94 satellite sites. The aim of this redesign was to optimize the user experience by centralizing content and streamlining these satellite sites.
In parallel with this objective, it was necessary to:
- Guarantee full accessibility of the site (RGAA compliance –equivalent of WCAG in France) both front-end and back-end as well, to enable visually impaired contributors to access it without difficulty.
- Merge 68 heterogeneous sites into a single, coherent platform.
About the project
Solutions
Axess proposed to the association to design a new site using Drupal 10, taking into account several specific approaches to meet the association's needs:
- Adaptation of the graphic charter
The existing charter did not comply with RGAA criteria. Indeed, the contrasts were insufficient. We reworked it to ensure visual accessibility.
- Creation of accessible HTML wireframes
These mock-ups were created to enable visually impaired users to validate the design proposals, while also serving as the basis for a POC (Proof Of Concept).
- Partnership with an agency specializing in digital accessibility
We collaborated with numerik-ea, an agency specializing in accessibility, which supported us at every stage of the project: design, development and acceptance.
- Installation and configuration of Drupal Group
This solution enables autonomous management of the various sections of the site, in particular those managed by the AVH's committees and satellite establishments.
- Workshops with visually impaired contributors
These sessions improved the accessibility of the back-office, with adjustments resulting in open source contributions within the Drupal community.
- RGAA compliance guarantee
We have guaranteed a minimum compliance rate of 90% to ensure full accessibility of the site, both front and back-office.
Results
The new site went live on October 8, 2024, accompanied by the migration of the majority of satellite sites. The last two sites, CERTAM and Imprimerie AVH, were migrated in May 2025.
An external accessibility audit assessed the site's compliance at 71.4%. Since then, numerous corrections have been made, bringing our estimate compliance rate to 92.1% (this rate will have to be confirmed by a new audit).
In addition, all contributors of the 68 satellite sites have been trained on the new back-office by AVH.
Why Drupal was chosen
In addition to its recognized robustness, Drupal was chosen without hesitation for its highly accessible back-office (and in particular the claro theme). Indeed, this was an essential criterion, as blind people had to contribute to the site's content. Drupal seemed to us to be the best solution on the market for building a complex, personalized website, while guaranteeing the accessibility of its back-office. Drupal's policy of putting accessibility at the heart of its concerns for future developments was a determining factor in our choice.
Technical Specifications
Drupal version:
Key modules/theme/distribution used:
These modules were mainly chosen for the accessibility of the back-office.
Migrate was used for the migration of the majority of the external sites.
Entity share was chosen for the migration of a specific site build in Drupal, who has a very complex data model.
