For the first time, 41,506 blind and partially sighted children in the United Kingdom can independently write block-based code. Microsoft MakeCode and the Micro:bit Educational Foundation launched full screen reader support for their widely-used learning platform on July 13, 2026. Behind it lies a technical breakthrough that should also make Scratch, MIT App Inventor, and other platforms using the same Blockly foundation from Google accessible.
The previous barrier: why block coding didn't work
Block-based programming like MakeCode works visually: users drag colored code blocks with mouse or touchscreen and connect them into programs. Screen readers, which convert computer content into speech or Braille, could not meaningfully interpret these graphical elements before. Blind children either relied on a sighted person to guide the mouse or were directed toward text-based programming languages like Python, which are far more demanding for beginners.
The Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) counts 35,275 children and youth with vision loss in England, 3,113 in Scotland, 1,883 in Wales, and 1,235 in Northern Ireland. The WHO estimates roughly six million school-age children worldwide live with disabling visual impairment. For these children, programming was a subject often made accessible only late or not at all.
What the new support now delivers
Screen readers including NVDA, JAWS, Windows Narrator, macOS VoiceOver, and ChromeVox can now access all code blocks in MakeCode, read them aloud, and navigate. Refreshable Braille displays are also supported. Blind children can use the same platform as sighted classmates without requiring someone to operate the mouse.
The feature was developed over two years through co-design with children and youth ages 8–18 who are blind or partially sighted, plus educators and accessibility specialists. Participating schools and organizations include New College Worcester, the Royal National College for the Blind in England, Koninklijke Visio in the Netherlands, and the Indiana School for the Blind and Visually Impaired in the U.S. The project was funded through the Google Blockly Accessibility Fund. Lucy Gill, Head of Product at the Micro:bit Educational Foundation, said: Every child deserves the chance to create with technology, regardless of ability.
In comparison: other breakthroughs for digital inclusion
The history of digital accessibility shows such breakthroughs often take long. NVDA (NonVisual Desktop Access), the world's most-used free screen reader, was published in 2006 by two Australian blind developers, Michael Curran and James Teh. It made the desktop computer truly usable for the visually impaired worldwide and is now available in over 40 languages. The cochlear implant, technology for hearing restoration, took roughly 15 years after its clinical introduction in the 1980s to become standard coverage in German health insurance. Today roughly 25,000 people in Germany use them, according to the German Cochlear Implant Society.
With MakeCode, the process is faster. The Micro:bit platform is used in schools in over 60 countries; the accessibility solution emerges not as an afterthought but as an actively developed standard within the platform ecosystem.
Who benefits next
Google's Blockly technology forms the technical foundation not only for MakeCode but also for Scratch (over 100 million registered users globally), MIT App Inventor, and CodeAI. Accessibility improvements developed in the MakeCode project flow into Google's open-source Blockly base and can thus be adopted across all these platforms.
The European Disability Forum, representing over 100 million people with disabilities in Europe, has repeatedly highlighted systematic underserving of disabled children with digital education. The UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities has repeatedly criticized, in CRPD reviews, the failure of many countries to make digital learning materials accessible. The EU Accessibility Act obligates companies in the EU to provide accessibility for digital products since 2025; its impact on educational platforms remains limited, but the expectation pressure on schools and software providers is rising.
Microsoft and the Micro:bit Educational Foundation name six million children worldwide as potential users. Whether that figure is ever fully reached depends on whether similar solutions for other Blockly platforms are actually implemented and whether schools in lower-income countries have access to assistive technology like screen readers. The technical problem is solved. The access problem remains.