Website review and improvement action plan development

The project issues
Redditch BC is located in the county of Worcestershire and has its own website. Redditch also participates within the Worcestershire Hub partnership for the provision of priority services. Currently there is increased access through mediated channels and the website is also encountering much more activity. Redditch wanted a review of the website CMS architecture, content, usability and accessibility issues.

Socitm Insight produces the Better Connected report that assesses and provides ratings for local authority websites. Socitm Consulting was engaged by Redditch to undertake a review of the council's current website and provide recommendations on its improvement.

The Socitm Consulting solution
The engagement conducted a detailed assessment of the website against Socitm's Better Connected guidelines. This included interviews with key personnel, followed by review and recommendations on content, usability, accessibility and other relevant e-government guidelines. Additional areas reviewed included high-level architecture components, including the use of XML and Web Services, as well as integration points and recommendations for the overall systems infrastructure, including Worcestershire Hub interactions.

The benefits to the client
The review and summary recommendations should enable Redditch to identify the key areas that require addressing, both locally and at County level. This should enable improvements to the website enabling the deployment of key transactional services.

Project identification
Council name: Redditch Borough Council
Client contact: Rob Seager, rob.seager@redditchbc.gov.uk
Lead consultant: abdul.kayam@socitm.gov.uk
Project no: 5038