RESOURCES › BEHIND THE SCENES

Behind the scenes

What needs to be in place for everything else to work: accurate content, accessible pages, sound systems and clear internal processes.

“Is this page still up to date? Who looks after it?”

BEHIND THE SCENES

Resources in this section

Each topic page explains what good looks like, where to start, and practical ideas to try.

1 IDEAS

Content Quality & Governance

Keep municipal website content accurate, accessible, understandable, and actively maintained.

Content Ownership & MaintenanceFoundation

3 IDEAS

Accessibility & Responsiveness

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

Usability & Continuous ImprovementApproachAccessibility & ReadabilityFoundationResponsive & Mobile DesignFoundation

4 IDEAS

Digital Foundations

Build a digital environment that is secure, reliable, connected, & manageable.

Security & PrivacyFoundationReliability & RecoveryFoundationIntegrations & PortabilityFoundationSupport & LifecycleFoundation

5 IDEAS

AI & Your Website

Help AI give residents accurate answers about your municipality, and use it where it genuinely saves time.

Answers from your own contentOptional AI toolMeeting and document summariesOptional AI toolRequest triageOptional AI toolPlain-language and translation helpOptional AI toolAI use policy and data handlingFoundation

3 IDEAS

Visual System & Components

Create a consistent visual language that makes the municipal website easier to recognize, understand, and maintain.

Visual Hierarchy & Content PresentationApproachBrand & Visual IdentityFoundationTemplates & Reusable ComponentsFoundation

3 IDEAS

Internal Workflow & Approvals

Help municipal staff move requests, decisions, and approvals through the organization more clearly.

Internal Requests & RoutingToolApprovals & EscalationToolWorkflow Status & OversightTool

IN THE CHECK-UP

Try it on your own website

Here are a few of the questions from the check-up. Take the full check-up for a short report with a first step for each priority.

CHECK-UP QUESTION

Content responsibility and review

For key information such as fees, schedules and emergency contacts, is someone responsible for keeping it up to date?

CHECK-UP QUESTION

Accessibility and mobile use

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

CHECK-UP QUESTION

AI accuracy

When checked against your published information, do AI assistants provide accurate answers to common questions about your municipality?

Free · up to 22 questions across all five areas · about 20 minutes

OTHER AREAS

Explore the rest of the resources

Understand
Information, notices, council

Find
Events, places, listings

Do
Requests, forms, payments

Engage
Have a say, get involved