diff --git a/theme/boost/scss/moodle/core.scss b/theme/boost/scss/moodle/core.scss
index a48811d197c..e87fa512f5a 100644
--- a/theme/boost/scss/moodle/core.scss
+++ b/theme/boost/scss/moodle/core.scss
@@ -1,5 +1,10 @@
 /* core.less */
 
+// When we upgrade boostrap to v4 release, we will need to change this to be used by the text-white class.
+// Because a primary colour that is both AA accessible on grey (footer) and white is not possible, we always
+// want white default colour.
+$bg-inverse-link-color: #fff !default;
+
 #region-main > .card {
     overflow-x: auto;
     overflow-y: visible;
@@ -2096,9 +2101,24 @@ ul {
     }
 }
 
-$footer-link-color: $brand-primary !default;
+// Footer link colour was added to allow the colour of footer links to be changed,
+// but really in bootstrap we want the colour of links on .bg-inverse to be changed
+// rather than being specific to the footer. This is kept for backwards compatibility.
+$footer-link-color: $bg-inverse-link-color !default;
 #page-footer a {
     color: $footer-link-color;
+    text-decoration: underline;
+    .icon {
+        color: $footer-link-color;
+    }
+}
+
+.bg-inverse a {
+    color: $bg-inverse-link-color;
+    text-decoration: underline;
+    .icon {
+        color: $bg-inverse-link-color;
+    }
 }
 
 .sitelink {
diff --git a/theme/boost/scss/preset/default.scss b/theme/boost/scss/preset/default.scss
index db92ae99121..12eb66f11d5 100644
--- a/theme/boost/scss/preset/default.scss
+++ b/theme/boost/scss/preset/default.scss
@@ -12,7 +12,7 @@ $gray-light:                #818a91 !default;
 $gray-lighter:              #eceeef !default;
 $gray-lightest:             #f7f7f9 !default;
 
-$brand-primary:             #00acdf !default;
+$brand-primary:             #1177d1 !default;
 $brand-success:             #77b300 !default;
 $brand-warning:             #ff8800 !default;
 $brand-danger:              #ff4136 !default;
@@ -27,7 +27,7 @@ $border-width: 1px !default;
 
 // Body
 $body-bg:    #f4f4f4 !default;
-$body-color: #3a3a3a !default;
+$body-color: #262626 !default;
 
 // Typography
 $font-family-sans-serif: "Open Sans", "Helvetica Neue", Arial, sans-serif !default;
diff --git a/theme/boost/upgrade.txt b/theme/boost/upgrade.txt
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..e4f48a8848b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/theme/boost/upgrade.txt
@@ -0,0 +1,7 @@
+This file describes API changes in /theme/boost
+information provided here is intended especially for theme designers.
+
+=== 3.4 ===
+* For improved accessibility, the footer links for boost have been changed to use $bg-inverse-link-color (defaults to white) and
+  now have an underline text-decoration. To override the link colour simply set $bg-inverse-link-color in your preset file or
+  theme scss.