Manchester makes access its web goal

Manchester Council is to redevelop its website and implement a content management system for the first time.

The website redevelopment is part of a programme to improve customer contact through a range of methods, from telephony to the web.

“We’re currently using flat HTML and we do not even have a content management system,” said Annette Walters, senior project manager for the Manchester Improvement Programme. “It will be a big change to be able to create content easily. We will be able to turn over news stories quicker and more departments will be able to contribute to the website.

“It is hard to control access and look and feel when you are working in flat HTML. A tiny change of code can change accessibility.”

The project aims to improve access for citizens and people with disabilities and offer access through devices such as mobile phones and PDAs.

“Customers will see a radically different look and feel when the website is launched in August,” said Walters. “Later they will notice far more transactional services and will be able to access news and events more interactively, and be able to do things like a postcode search for local councillors. There will also be better provision to submit information.”

Walters said usability rather than rapid development had been the most important factor in choosing Jadu CMS with Google Enterprise Search.

“Some content management and enterprise management systems will do the job but are not easy to use,” she said. “They can be hard to navigate and create more cost in the back-office as they are time-consuming to use. We were looking for usability so that we could maintain our customer focus.”

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