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Accessibility &
Responsiveness

Create digital experiences that are accessible, adaptable, and easy to use.

Why it Matters

A website can contain the right information and still be difficult to use. Readable content, flexible layouts, accessible controls, and clear feedback can remove barriers and help more people complete tasks successfully.

Can people complete common website tasks on a mobile device and using a keyboard alone?

When it's working well

Common tasks work on any screen size, with a keyboard alone and with a screen reader. Text is easy to read, buttons are easy to select, and forms explain errors clearly. Content is written in plain language.

A quick win

Test your three most common tasks on a phone and with a keyboard alone. Fix the most serious problems first, such as small buttons, missing form labels or PDFs that can't be read on a phone. Run a free accessibility checker on those pages.

Ideas that help

Usability & Continuous Improvement

APPROACH

Use real feedback and behaviour to identify friction and improve the experience over time.

Even a well-designed website can become harder to use as content, services, and user expectations change. Usability testing, feedback, and analytics can help municipalities understand where people struggle, which interactions are unclear, and where design improvements could make common tasks easier.

Ongoing improvement should:

  • Give people a clear way to provide feedback.
  • Use usability testing to identify confusing or difficult interactions.
  • Review analytics to understand common paths and points of friction.
  • Keep calls-to-action and interaction patterns consistent.
  • Turn findings into practical design and content improvements.
  • Check which site searches are not producing useful results.
A cycle of three steps: ask visitors if a page was helpful, learn where people get stuck, then improve the page and ask again, with small fixes every month.

Foundations

Accessibility & Readability

FOUNDATION

Make municipal content easier to perceive, understand, and use for people with different accessibility needs.

Accessibility should be built into everyday design and content decisions rather than treated as a final check. Clear structure, readable text, sufficient contrast, accessible controls, and meaningful alternatives can help more people use municipal information and services independently.

Accessible experiences should:

  • Use sufficient colour contrast and readable typography.
  • Follow a clear and consistent heading structure.
  • Support keyboard navigation and accessible links and buttons.
  • Provide meaningful alternative text and accessible media.
  • Present forms, instructions, and error messages clearly.
  • Respect reduced-motion and other accessibility preferences where appropriate.
  • Use plain, familiar language.
The same notice before and after. Before is pale, long-winded text full of jargon. After has a clear heading, plain sentences about garbage day changing, a short checklist, and labels for strong contrast, plain language and clear headings.

Responsive & Mobile Design

FOUNDATION

Make municipal websites work clearly and comfortably across different screen sizes and devices.

People may access municipal information from a phone, tablet, laptop, or desktop computer. Responsive design helps layouts, navigation, forms, and complex content adapt to the available space without making important information harder to find or use.

Responsive design should:

  • Adapt layouts cleanly across screen sizes.
  • Keep navigation simple and usable on smaller screens.
  • Use touch-friendly controls and spacing.
  • Make forms easy to complete on mobile devices.
  • Present tables and other complex content in a mobile-friendly way.
  • Prioritize important information when screen space is limited.
The same web page shown on a desktop monitor, a tablet and a phone, with the content rearranged to fit each screen.

Related ideas

How well does your website work for residents?

Take the free check-up. In about 20 minutes you'll walk through everyday situations, like reporting a pothole or finding a council agenda, and get a plain-language check-up report of what's working and what to tackle first.

Start the check-up

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