1. Accessibility Commitment

Sunrise United Garden Center is committed to providing customers, prospective customers, website visitors, employees, vendors, and other members of the public with meaningful and equitable access to its goods, services, information, and digital experiences.

Accessibility is considered part of customer service, website quality, risk management, and responsible business operations. We seek to identify, remove, and prevent barriers that may affect people with disabilities, including people with visual, auditory, mobility, speech, cognitive, neurological, learning, and other disabilities.

Where an individual encounters a barrier, Sunrise United Garden Center will make reasonable efforts to provide an accessible alternative or accommodation, subject to applicable law and the point of undue hardship where that legal standard applies.

2. Scope

This Accessibility Policy & Statement applies to the public-facing digital and customer-service activities of Sunrise United Garden Center, including:

• sunrisegarden.site and its public webpages, category pages, product pages, cart, checkout, account and customer-service functions;
• order-status, payment, shipping, return, refund, privacy, legal, accessibility and support pages;
• email and telephone customer service;
• digital documents, downloadable files and customer communications produced by Sunrise United Garden Center;
• online forms, account-registration processes and marketing sign-up forms;
• customer-facing services at the Sunrise United Garden Center location at 5404 50th Avenue, Bonnyville, Alberta; and
• accessibility-related interactions with third-party systems used as part of the customer journey, to the extent Sunrise United Corporation can reasonably configure, select, replace, or influence those systems.

3. Legal and Standards Framework

Sunrise United Corporation is an Alberta business. Providers of goods and services in Alberta have obligations under the Alberta Human Rights Act, including a duty to accommodate needs connected to protected grounds to the point of undue hardship. The Alberta Human Rights Commission explains that service providers must take reasonable steps to remove or reduce discriminatory barriers and provide equal opportunity to participate in services.

The federal Accessible Canada Act applies to organizations under federal responsibility, including federal government bodies and federally regulated private-sector organizations such as banks, telecommunications, broadcasting, and certain transportation providers. Ordinary provincially regulated retail stores are generally outside that federal statute's direct scope. Sunrise United Garden Center nevertheless considers federal accessibility principles and standards useful voluntary references for inclusive service design.

For web accessibility, Sunrise United Garden Center uses the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2 Level AA as its principal technical target. WCAG 2.2 became a W3C Recommendation on October 5, 2023.

4. Accessibility Target and Conformance Approach

Our target is to design, maintain, and improve the Website toward substantial conformance with WCAG 2.2 Level AA, while also considering practical usability with common assistive technologies and real-world customer tasks.

Because websites change continuously and may include third-party components, this statement does not claim universal or permanent conformance. New content, plugins, themes, payment widgets, shipping tools, embedded services, documents, and marketing features may introduce new barriers. We therefore use a process of prevention, testing, feedback, and remediation rather than treating accessibility as a one-time certification exercise.

Where full technical conformance is not immediately achievable, Sunrise United Garden Center seeks to provide an effective alternative method of access and to prioritize remediation based on customer impact, severity, transaction importance, and feasibility.

5. Core Accessibility Principles

Our accessibility approach is guided by the four WCAG principles: content and controls should be perceivable, operable, understandable, and robust.

6. Website Structure and Navigation

Sunrise United Garden Center aims to maintain predictable, consistent navigation across the Website. Major navigation areas should use clear names and appear in a reasonably consistent order.

• Pages should use meaningful page titles and logical heading structures.
• Headings should identify sections rather than being used only for visual styling.
• Navigation menus should be keyboard reachable and understandable by assistive technology.
• Breadcrumbs, category structures, search functions, and other navigation aids should be used where they materially improve wayfinding.
• Repeated navigation should be implemented consistently across pages.
• Where practical, a skip link or equivalent mechanism should allow keyboard and screen-reader users to bypass repeated navigation and move directly to main content.

7. Keyboard Accessibility

Core Website functions should be operable using a keyboard without requiring a mouse or touch input. This includes navigation, menus, links, product selection, cart functions, forms, checkout controls, dialogs, and customer-account functions where technically feasible.

• Keyboard focus should move in a logical order.
• Interactive controls should receive visible focus indication.
• Keyboard focus should not become trapped in menus, modals, sliders, or other components.
• Users should be able to close dismissible dialogs with standard keyboard interactions where applicable.
• Custom controls should use appropriate semantics and keyboard behaviour rather than relying only on pointer events.

8. Screen Reader and Assistive Technology Support

The Website should use semantic HTML and accessible naming practices so that common screen readers and other assistive technologies can identify page structure, headings, landmarks, links, buttons, form fields, status messages, and other controls.

• Form controls should have programmatically associated labels or accessible names.
• Status messages such as cart updates, validation errors, and important transaction confirmations should be exposed to assistive technology when appropriate.
• Custom widgets should use native HTML controls where possible; where custom widgets are necessary, appropriate accessibility semantics should be implemented.
• Dynamic content changes should not silently remove focus or create unexpected navigation.
• Content should not depend solely on visual position to communicate meaning.

9. Visual Accessibility and Low-Vision Support

Sunrise United Garden Center seeks to support customers who use magnification, enlarged text, high-contrast settings, browser zoom, screen magnifiers, or customized display settings.

• Important text should remain readable at reasonable zoom levels.
• Critical information should not be embedded only in images where a text alternative can be provided.
• Layout should adapt to smaller viewports and enlarged content without unnecessary horizontal scrolling where reasonably achievable.
• Controls should remain identifiable when zoomed or magnified.
• Content should not intentionally disable common browser zoom functions.

10. Colour, Contrast and Non-Colour Cues

Colour should not be the only method used to communicate essential information. For example, an error should not be identified only by a red border, and an availability state should not rely only on a green indicator.

Text, icons, controls, focus indicators, and other meaningful visual elements should be designed with sufficient contrast consistent with the applicable WCAG 2.2 Level AA success criteria, subject to permitted exceptions such as logos and inactive components.

Where promotional graphics or product imagery contains decorative colour combinations that are not sufficiently legible for text, the essential information should also be presented as accessible HTML text.

11. Text, Typography and Readability

• Body text should use readable font sizes and reasonable line spacing.
• Long blocks of text should be divided with headings, paragraphs, or lists where this improves comprehension.
• All-capital text should be limited for long-form content.
• Links should be identifiable by more than subtle colour differences where practical.
• Text should not be justified in a manner that creates large, irregular spacing that substantially impairs readability.
• Important policy information should be written in reasonably plain language while preserving legal accuracy.

12. Zoom, Reflow and Responsive Design

The Website is intended to function across a range of desktop, tablet, and mobile screen sizes. Responsive layouts should preserve access to navigation, product information, cart functions, and checkout controls as the viewport changes.

We aim for content to reflow appropriately when users enlarge text or zoom the page, consistent with applicable WCAG requirements. Where a particular data table, image, or specialized component reasonably requires two-dimensional scrolling, the design should avoid forcing unnecessary horizontal scrolling on unrelated content.

13. Forms, Checkout and Transaction Accessibility

Checkout is a critical customer pathway and receives elevated accessibility priority. Customers should be able to identify required information, understand labels and instructions, review order details, identify errors, and complete payment using accessible controls to the extent supported by Sunrise United Garden Center and its payment providers.

• Fields should have clear labels and instructions.
• Required fields should be identified in text or programmatic form, not solely by colour.
• Field purpose and autocomplete attributes should be used where appropriate.
• Checkout totals, taxes, shipping charges, discounts, and currency should be presented in understandable text.
• Customers should be able to review and correct key transaction information before final submission.
• Policy acknowledgements should use accessible links and controls.
• Time limits should be avoided or extended where practical unless required for security or transaction integrity.
• Payment errors should be communicated clearly without unnecessarily exposing sensitive financial information.

14. Error Identification and Recovery

When a user submits incomplete or invalid information, the Website should identify the affected field and explain the problem in understandable language where feasible.

• Errors should not be communicated by colour alone.
• Error messages should be associated with the relevant field when technically possible.
• Users should not be required to re-enter information unnecessarily after an error.
• For important transactions, users should have a reasonable opportunity to review, correct, or confirm data before final submission.
• Where a transaction fails, the customer should be told whether the order was submitted, payment was authorized, or further action is required, to the extent that information can be safely and accurately provided.

15. Accessible Authentication and Account Access

Account sign-in and security controls should be designed so that authentication does not unnecessarily depend on a cognitive test or a single sensory method. Where third-party authentication or fraud tools are used, Sunrise United Garden Center will seek configurations that provide accessible alternatives when reasonably available.

Security requirements may sometimes restrict the type of accommodation that can be offered. In those situations, customer service may provide a secure alternative workflow where available without requesting sensitive passwords, PINs, or complete card-security codes by ordinary email.

16. Links, Buttons and Controls

• Interactive elements should have clear accessible names that describe their purpose.
• Link text should be meaningful in context and should avoid excessive use of ambiguous phrases such as “click here.”
• Buttons should be implemented as buttons where possible rather than non-semantic elements styled to look interactive.
• Controls should have adequate target size and spacing where practical, especially on touch devices.
• Focus states should remain visible and should not be obscured by sticky headers, overlays, or other content where reasonably possible.

17. Images, Product Photography and Alternative Text

Product images are important to Sunrise United Garden Center. Images that communicate meaningful product or instructional information should have alternative text or an equivalent textual description appropriate to the image purpose.

• Decorative images may use empty alternative text so assistive technologies can skip them.
• Product-image alternative text should identify the product or relevant visual information without unnecessary promotional language.
• Images of text should be avoided for essential content where styled HTML text can reasonably be used instead.
• Where packaging contains critical instructions that are not otherwise available as text, the important information should also be provided in accessible text or through customer support.
• Complex informational graphics should include a concise alternative plus a longer textual explanation when necessary to convey the same essential information.

18. Audio, Video and Multimedia

If Sunrise United Garden Center publishes prerecorded video or audio that contains information necessary to understand a product, service, policy, or instruction, accessible alternatives should be provided as appropriate.

• Captions should be provided for meaningful prerecorded speech in video when required by the applicable accessibility target.
• Important non-speech audio should be represented in captions or descriptions where necessary for understanding.
• Transcripts should be considered for audio-only informational content.
• Audio description or equivalent descriptive information should be considered where important visual content is not otherwise conveyed.
• Autoplay with sound should be avoided or provide an accessible method to stop, pause, or control it.

19. Motion, Animation and Flashing Content

The Website should avoid content that flashes at rates known to create seizure risks. Motion and animation should not be necessary to understand core shopping or policy information.

Where significant motion is triggered by interaction and could cause discomfort, a reduced-motion preference should be respected where technically feasible, or the user should have a method to stop or avoid the movement.

20. Touch and Mobile Accessibility

• Controls should be large enough and sufficiently separated for practical touch use where possible.
• Essential functions should not depend on complex gestures when a simpler alternative can reasonably be provided.
• Device orientation should not be locked unless a specific function genuinely requires it.
• Mobile menus, filters, quantity controls, cart functions, and checkout controls should be tested for keyboard and screen-reader behaviour where applicable.
• Pinch-to-zoom and operating-system magnification should not be intentionally blocked.

21. Cognitive and Learning Accessibility

Sunrise United Garden Center seeks to reduce unnecessary cognitive barriers by using consistent navigation, clear headings, predictable controls, concise instructions, and understandable error messages.

• Instructions should be placed near the task they relate to.
• Customers should not be asked for the same information repeatedly in a single transaction where the information can safely and lawfully be reused.
• Important deadlines, shipping times, return periods, and transaction consequences should be stated clearly.
• Icons that may be unfamiliar should be accompanied by text or an accessible name.
• Help information should be provided consistently on key transaction pages where practical.

22. Language and Plain-Language Practices

The primary language of each page should be programmatically identified where technically possible. When content includes substantial passages in another language, those passages should be identified appropriately where this materially improves assistive-technology pronunciation.

Legal and policy information may require precise terminology, but Sunrise United Garden Center seeks to avoid unnecessary complexity, unexplained abbreviations, and ambiguous instructions in customer-facing content.

23. Documents and Downloadable Content

When Sunrise United Garden Center provides downloadable documents intended for customers, accessibility should be considered during document creation. Where practical, documents should use real headings, readable text, logical reading order, descriptive links, accessible tables, and alternative text for meaningful images.

If a downloadable document is not accessible to a customer, the customer may request the same information in an alternative format. Sunrise United Garden Center will make reasonable efforts to provide the information in an accessible form without imposing an accessibility-related surcharge.

24. Third-Party Content and Integrations

The Website may rely on third-party services such as payment processors, mapping tools, shipping services, review systems, analytics, social-media embeds, fraud-prevention tools, and e-commerce plugins. Sunrise United Corporation does not control every aspect of third-party accessibility.

When a third-party component presents a material barrier in a critical customer pathway, Sunrise United Garden Center will consider available configuration changes, updates, alternative vendors, accessible workarounds, or assisted customer-service options. Third-party status does not prevent us from treating a reported barrier seriously, even where remediation depends partly on another provider.

25. E-Commerce, Payment and Fraud Controls

Accessibility and security must be balanced carefully. Fraud-prevention systems, address verification, multi-factor authentication, CAPTCHA tools, and payment controls should not unnecessarily exclude customers with disabilities.

• Where CAPTCHA or challenge-response systems are used, an accessible alternative should be provided when reasonably available.
• Security controls should not require users to disclose disability information unless that information is genuinely necessary for a requested accommodation.
• Customer service should not ask a user to send a complete card number, CVV/CVC/CID, PIN, or banking password by ordinary email as an accessibility workaround.
• Where a payment flow is inaccessible because of a third-party component, Sunrise United Garden Center will seek a secure alternative method where feasible and lawful.

26. Accessibility of Customer Service

Customers may contact Sunrise United Garden Center by email or telephone for accessibility assistance. Customer-service staff should communicate respectfully and focus on the functional barrier and the accommodation needed rather than requesting unnecessary personal or medical details.

27. Physical Customer-Facing Accessibility

This policy also recognizes that accessibility can arise in the physical customer-service environment. Sunrise United Garden Center will make reasonable efforts to provide equal access to customer services and to accommodate disability-related needs to the point of undue hardship as required by applicable Alberta human-rights law.

Examples of possible accommodations may include assistance locating or describing products, alternative communication methods, additional time to complete a transaction, accessible pickup arrangements where available, or another reasonable service method. The appropriate accommodation depends on the individual need, the service involved, safety considerations, and the available options.

28. Accommodation Requests

A person requesting an accessibility accommodation should tell Sunrise United Garden Center what barrier they are experiencing and what type of assistance or change would help them access the service. The customer is not expected to know the exact technical solution.

Sunrise United Garden Center may ask reasonable questions needed to understand the functional limitation and identify an effective accommodation. We will avoid requesting diagnosis or medical information that is not reasonably necessary to assess the accommodation request.

Accommodation requests will be considered individually. Where the first proposed option cannot reasonably be provided, we will consider effective alternatives where available.

29. Alternative Formats and Communication Supports

Customers who cannot access information in the format provided may request an alternative format or communication support, including:

• plain-text or accessible electronic text;
• larger-print information where reasonably practicable;
• email communication instead of telephone communication, or telephone communication instead of email where appropriate;
• a verbal explanation of essential product or policy information;
• an accessible version of a customer document where reasonably available; or
• another mutually suitable format depending on the information and the customer's need.

Accessibility-related alternative formats will not carry an additional accessibility surcharge. If producing a particular format would create undue hardship or is not technically possible, Sunrise United Garden Center will discuss an effective alternative where available.

30. Accessibility Feedback and Complaint Handling

Sunrise United Garden Center welcomes accessibility feedback, including reports of barriers, suggestions, complaints, and positive feedback about accessible features.

When reporting a digital accessibility problem, it is helpful, but not mandatory, to include the page address, the task being attempted, the nature of the barrier, the device/browser or assistive technology involved, and a preferred contact method.

Accessibility feedback can be submitted to cs@sunrisegarden.site or by telephone at +1-519-993-2775. We will make reasonable efforts to acknowledge substantive accessibility requests promptly and to investigate barriers that materially prevent access to goods, services, information, or transactions.

Accessibility complaints will be handled in good faith. Raising an accessibility concern will not reduce a customer's right to receive service or to use available complaint, human-rights, consumer-protection, or legal processes.

31. Testing and Quality Assurance

Sunrise United Garden Center may use a combination of automated testing, manual review, keyboard testing, screen-reader checks, colour-contrast review, responsive testing, and customer feedback.

Automated tools can identify some accessibility issues but cannot establish full conformance or usability on their own. Manual review is particularly important for keyboard operation, focus order, alternative-text quality, form instructions, error recovery, dynamic content, and overall task completion.

Testing priority should be given to high-traffic and transaction-critical areas such as the home page, category pages, product pages, search, cart, checkout, account access, order status, contact, shipping, returns, payment/security, privacy, and legal/accessibility pages.

32. Accessibility Remediation Priorities

When accessibility issues are identified, Sunrise United Garden Center may prioritize remediation using factors such as:

• whether the issue blocks purchasing, payment, customer support, or access to legally important information;
• how many users or pages are affected;
• whether the issue prevents keyboard or screen-reader operation;
• whether an effective alternative is already available;
• whether the barrier affects safety, privacy, or payment security;
• whether remediation depends on a third-party vendor; and
• the complexity and time reasonably required for a durable fix.

33. Procurement and Vendor Expectations

Accessibility should be considered when selecting or renewing website themes, e-commerce plugins, payment services, customer-support tools, shipping tools, document-generation services, and other technology that materially affects the customer journey.

Where practical, vendors may be asked about accessibility documentation, conformance reports, supported keyboard behaviour, screen-reader compatibility, accessibility testing, and known limitations. Accessibility should be considered alongside security, reliability, cost, functionality, and merchant-processing requirements.

34. Staff Responsibilities and Training

Accessibility depends on day-to-day content and service decisions, not only on software. Personnel responsible for website content, customer service, product information, marketing, order processing, and technology should receive role-appropriate guidance on accessibility.

• Content staff should know how to use headings, meaningful link text, accessible images, and readable formatting.
• Customer-service staff should know how to receive and escalate accommodation requests respectfully.
• E-commerce administrators should understand that new plugins or layout changes can create accessibility regressions.
• Personnel handling sensitive information should understand that accessibility accommodations must not weaken payment or privacy safeguards unnecessarily.

35. Privacy and Accessibility Requests

Information provided in connection with an accessibility or accommodation request may include personal information. Sunrise United Garden Center will handle such information in accordance with its Privacy Policy and applicable privacy obligations.

Only information reasonably necessary to understand or provide the requested accommodation should be collected. Accessibility information should not be used for unrelated marketing or discriminatory decision-making.

36. Service Interruptions and Accessibility

Planned or unplanned Website outages, payment-service interruptions, building-access restrictions, or technology failures may disproportionately affect some customers with disabilities.

Where a material interruption affects an accessible service or workaround, Sunrise United Garden Center will make reasonable efforts to provide notice, an alternative method of service, or updated information when practical.

37. Emergency and Safety Considerations

Accessibility accommodations will be provided in a manner consistent with legitimate health, safety, security, and legal requirements. A safety concern will not be used as a reason to deny accommodation without considering whether the risk is real, significant, and capable of being addressed through a reasonable alternative.

For in-person service, emergency procedures and staff assistance should consider the needs of customers with disabilities to the extent relevant to the business and premises.

38. Accessibility Records and Governance

Sunrise United Corporation may maintain internal records of material accessibility reports, remediation decisions, vendor issues, and accommodation outcomes where appropriate for operational follow-up, risk management, and legal compliance.

Records containing personal information will be limited to what is reasonably necessary and handled in accordance with applicable privacy requirements. Accessibility governance may be coordinated among website administration, customer service, operations, and management depending on the issue.

39. Continuous Improvement

Accessibility is an ongoing process. Sunrise United Garden Center intends to review accessibility when launching new templates, major redesigns, new checkout components, major policy changes, or new customer-service technology.

Customer feedback, accessibility testing, platform updates, changes to standards, and changes in applicable law may lead to revisions of this policy or technical remediation work.

40. Limitations and Known Constraints

Some content or functionality may not yet meet the accessibility target in all circumstances. Potential limitations can arise from legacy content, third-party components, embedded services, older documents, dynamic e-commerce widgets, or newly introduced functionality.

Sunrise United Garden Center does not use this statement to guarantee that every interaction will be barrier-free. Instead, we commit to receiving reports, providing reasonable alternatives where possible, and correcting material barriers according to their impact and feasibility.

If a customer cannot complete an important task because of an accessibility barrier, they should contact us so we can attempt to provide an accessible alternative and record the issue for remediation.

41. No Retaliation or Disadvantage

A customer will not be denied ordinary service, charged an accessibility surcharge, or treated adversely merely because they request an accommodation, report an accessibility barrier, use assistive technology, or provide accessibility feedback.

This does not prevent Sunrise United Garden Center from applying legitimate, non-discriminatory security, payment, inventory, shipping, or legal requirements that apply to the transaction.

42. Contact Information

Accessibility questions, accommodation requests, alternative-format requests, and reports of digital barriers may be directed to:

When contacting us about a Website barrier, please do not send complete payment-card numbers, CVV/CVC/CID security codes, PINs, passwords, or online-banking credentials by email.

43. Reference Framework

This policy is informed by the following public accessibility resources and legal/technical frameworks:

• W3C Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2
• W3C Web Accessibility Initiative - What's New in WCAG 2.2
• Alberta Human Rights Commission - Duty to Accommodate in Goods and Services
• Government of Canada - Summary of the Accessible Canada Act
• Accessibility Standards Canada - Mandate and scope

These references are provided for transparency and guidance. Inclusion of a reference does not mean Sunrise United Corporation is legally subject to every statute, regulation, or standard linked above in every circumstance.

44. Publication and Review

This Accessibility Policy & Statement should be linked from the Website footer and made reasonably easy to locate. The page should remain publicly accessible without requiring a customer account or purchase.

Sunrise United Garden Center may revise this statement to reflect changes in its Website, customer-service practices, technology, accessibility standards, or applicable legal requirements. The current revision date should be displayed whenever the policy is updated.

This document is intended to communicate accessibility practices and commitments. It is not a substitute for individualized legal advice and does not constitute an independent certification of WCAG conformance. Where a mandatory legal requirement provides greater protection, that requirement prevails.