Government Website Design That Everyone Can Use
For many people, your website is the first place they go for a service. We design and build accessible, plain-language government sites that people can use, search engines can rank and AI can read.
What Is Government Website Design?
Government website design is planning and building public sector sites around people’s tasks, with accessibility, plain language and search built in.
A good one helps people finish the task online, first time.
How People Use a Government Website
Most visitors arrive with one task and little time.
- 01
Arrive From Search
Many land on an inner page from Google or an AI answer, so every page has to stand on its own.
- 02
Look for the Task
They scan headings and links for the one thing they came to do.
- 03
Need It to Work for Them
Screen readers, zoom, slow connections and other languages all have to work.
- 04
Finish or Call
If they can’t finish online, they phone or visit a service centre instead.
What Actually Moves Website Results for Government
Task-First Navigation
Organise menus around what people do, such as pay, apply, report and book, and keep the org chart for the About section.
WCAG 2.2 AA From Day One
The Australian Human Rights Commission says organisations should meet WCAG 2.2 at a minimum of Level AA. Design every component to it from the first wireframe.
Style Manual Content
The Digital Service Standard points agencies to the Australian Government Style Manual and its plain language guidance. Write every page to it.
Forms People Finish
Short, accessible forms with clear error messages and save-and-return help people finish online instead of calling.
Fast on Any Connection
Light pages that load quickly on older phones and regional connections, tested on real devices before launch.
Built for Search and AI
Clean headings, schema and crawlable pages, so Google and AI assistants find and quote the official answer.
WCAG 2.2 AA and the Digital Experience Policy
Public sites are judged against published standards. We design to them from the first wireframe.
WCAG 2.2 Level AA
AHRC guidance says organisations should conform with WCAG 2.2 at a minimum of Level AA. We test templates with automated tools and by hand.
Digital Experience Policy
Mandatory for in-scope Commonwealth digital services since 1 January 2025, with four standards covering service, inclusion, access and performance.
State and Council Sites
The policy doesn’t apply to state or territory services, but the DTA encourages agencies outside its scope to adopt it. We use it as our benchmark.
Meet the People Behind Your Government Website
Our designers, developers and SEO team work from one brief, so accessibility, content and search are built in from the first wireframe.
Why Website Design Matters for Government Now
of Australians have disability, up from 17.7% in 2018 (ABS, 2024)
WCAG 2.2 Level AA is the minimum the Australian Human Rights Commission recommends (AHRC, 2025)
of Google AI Mode citations in our study were government pages (Uprise research, 2026)
Template Site vs Built for Government
Template Site
- Menus built around pages
- Accessibility left to plugins
- Content copied from the old site
- Hard to scale across many services
- Search and AI left until after launch
Built for Government
- Navigation built around tasks
- WCAG 2.2 AA designed in and tested
- Content rewritten to the Style Manual
- Components that scale to thousands of pages
- Schema and clean structure for search and AI
A template can suit a small board or committee site. Service-heavy agencies and councils need a site built for the job.
How We Design Government Websites
Four stages, each with a sign-off point that suits your governance.
1
Discovery and User Research
We review analytics, search data and common call reasons, then talk to users to find the tasks that matter most.
2
Content and Structure
We map tasks, rewrite priority content in plain English and plan redirects so existing rankings carry over.
3
Accessible Design and Build
We design components to WCAG 2.2 AA, build on a CMS your team can run, and test with assistive technology.
4
Launch and Improve
We launch with redirects and monitoring in place, then track performance and fix issues in the months after.
Web Design for Government Pricing
From $4,500
- Most government sites need more than the base build, so we quote on scope after discovery.
- We publish our price so you know whether we’re in your range before you book a call.
What’s included
- Discovery and user research
- Task-based site structure
- Plain-language content for priority pages
- WCAG 2.2 AA design and testing
- SEO migration and redirects
- CMS training for your team
Get a Free Government Website Review
- The accessibility issues on your key templates
- Which top tasks are hard to find or finish
- How well Google and AI can read your pages
Book Your Free Audit
Our Clients Love Us
Verified
5.0
We came to Uprise Digital at the start of the year. We’re a large residential construction company and our pipeline had really started to shrink. We were only halfway through our insurance limit and our architect pipeline had basically dried up so we knew we needed to find the right marketing partner and fast.
From the first conversation Lakshane sat down with us and actually explained the strategy. Rather than just throwing us into a direct funnel they took a value first approach to the marketing which made a lot of sense for our industry. They did proper market research put together all our brochures landing pages ad scripts and basically built the entire strategy from the ground up including all the backend and technical side of things.
Working with Ben, Hayley and the rest of the team has been seamless honestly. Within a day of going live we were already getting 5 to 6 inquiries a day which was above the benchmarks the Uprise team had even set for us.
We’re working toward 8 figure sales goals so there was real money on the line here. But from the strategy right through to the video production team the whole experience has been awesome. Super happy with where things are heading and already seeing the results on the ground.

- Owner @ KGN Homes
Verified
5.0
We’ve been working with Uprise for a little over a month now and already what a huge difference it’s made having the right people on the job! From the get go Lakshane understood what we needed and Ben on the fortnightly meetings has been a huge help in educating us along the way and ensuring we’re on track to achieving our targets. They even built my business a custom landing page, making my Google ads even more effective. Couldn’t recommend them more highly!

- Owner @ JC Earthmoving
Verified
5.0
Was a bit hesitant after getting ghosted by another agency but these guys have been unreal for my demo business. The biggest difference is they actually stay in touch and care about getting you wins. Ben, Lakshane and the team don’t just set stuff up and disappear – they’re always checking in, fixing problems straight away and looking at ways to improve things.
Only a few weeks in and I’ve already locked in 2 house demos with a builder, got heaps of other quotes out there too. Leads have been solid and yeah some jobs are 4-12 weeks away but thats just how it goes in this game, at least Im building up work.
Theyve sorted everything from the Meta ads to retargeting and when I had issues with emails going to promotions or targeting the wrong areas they fixed it immediately. What makes Uprise different – if they dont hear from me they message me first, not the other way around.
This is just the start and keen to see where it goes. Would definitely recommend if you want an agency that actually cares.

- Owner @ DemoSpec
Verified
5.0
Working with Uprise has been a refreshing change from our past experiences with marketing agencies. From the beginning, the team took the time to understand our products, target audience, and what actually drives enquiries in our industry. That level of attention made all the difference.
They’ve helped refine our advertising strategy and improve our content across multiple platforms, leading to a clear increase in both leads and engagement. Communication is consistent, transparent, and genuinely collaborative – something we hadn’t experienced before.
We’ve been with Uprise since around February, and the results speak for themselves. It’s great to finally work with a team that delivers on what they promise and brings real value to our business. Highly recommend.

- Superior Panel
Verified
5.0
Thank you team 🙌🏼

- Owner @ LMS Constructions
Verified
5.0
Uprise Digital transformed struggling business from 2-day to consistent 6-day operations over several months. Lakshane, Prav, and team provide incredible impact, unwavering support, and are always available for questions and strategy adjustments.

- Founder @ Demolition4U
Verified
5.0

- Founder @ You Do You Productions
Verified
5.0

- Founder @ Better Life Patios, Brisbane
Verified
5.0

- Founder @ Farache Group, Sydney
Verified
5.0

- Founder @ DW Carpentry
Verified
5.0
Outstanding landing pages and comprehensive marketing services for cleaning and building services company. Their expertise, meticulous attention to detail, and results-driven approach greatly boosted online presence.

- Chief Business Manager @ Just Focus
Verified
5.0

- Founder @ The Wallsmiths
Web Design for Government Questions, Answered
The Australian Human Rights Commission’s 2025 guidelines say organisations should conform with WCAG 2.2 at a minimum of Level AA. The DTA’s Digital Service Standard asks for the latest version of WCAG, which is 2.2.
It applies to in-scope Commonwealth digital services. It doesn’t apply to state or territory services, though the DTA encourages agencies outside its scope to adopt the standards. We use them as the benchmark on every public sector build.
We are WordPress and Webflow partners, and we pick the platform your team can run and secure. If your agency has a mandated CMS, tell us and we will scope around it.
A planned migration protects them. We map every old URL to its new home, set redirects before launch and monitor rankings and errors closely afterwards.
We run automated checks on every template, then test by hand with keyboard-only navigation and screen readers. You get a report of what was tested and what was fixed.
Custom sites start from $4,500. Most government sites have more pages, forms and integrations than that covers, so we quote on scope after discovery.
Yes. Tell us how your agency buys and we will quote against your brief. Commonwealth ICT services are often bought through BuyICT’s Digital Marketplace Panel 2, which covers ICT labour hire and professional and consulting services.
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