Bournemouth, Christchurch, and Poole (BCP) Council

Recognising the need for a unified and user-friendly online presence as services merged, the council embarked on a collaborative journey with Zengenti to revamp its website and improve user engagement.

The existing website was created using an older version of Contensis which didn’t have the same content capabilities as it has today. The structure was unclear, hindering navigation and information discovery, and its outdated design no longer reflected the council's identity.

Shifting mindsets: a collaborative domain modelling workshop

To provide a deeper understanding of the more modern features of Contensis, Zengenti conducted a domain modelling workshop with the BCP Council team. This interactive session served two key purposes:

1. Introduction to Content Types and Entries (CT&E): The workshop began with a practical exercise. By collaboratively modelling a simple domain like a "chocolate bar" in groups, participants gained hands-on experience with the CT&E approach. This exercise served as a springboard for understanding how this could be applied to their more complex real-world domains.
2. Modelling BCP Council’s domains: Following the introductory exercise, the groups shifted their focus to modelling BCP Council's existing domains, including content, car parks, venues, and parks. This collaborative modelling process not only provided valuable insights into BCP's information architecture but also facilitated a crucial shift in mindset.

From "wish list" to structured content: the power of content modelling

Early workshops revealed a common sentiment among BCP's team members. They envisioned a content-rich website with features such as library maps, consistent car park information, and user-friendly elements like custom alerts and contact cards. These aspirations, while extensive, highlighted the team's desire for a more organised and user-friendly online experience.

Contensis proved to be the perfect platform to address these content-related wishes. Content modelling workshops with the BCP team demonstrated how seemingly disparate information, like car park pricing and library maps, could be effectively structured and managed using content types and entries. This realisation empowered the BCP team to move beyond their initial "wish list" mentality and embrace the potential of content types and entries for building a robust and well-organised information architecture.

The power of accessibility

In today's digital age, ensuring everyone can access and use online resources is crucial. That's why BCP chose the GOV.UK Design System as inspiration. It promotes accessibility and inclusivity for all users, regardless of their abilities or devices. By adopting this framework, the council prioritised user-centred design and created a foundation for a successful online experience.

Creating accessible and user-friendly services

The GOV.UK Design System implementation involved two main aspects. Firstly, the project team created a GOV.UK inspired design system and used React to build the front-end. Secondly, the focus was the content hierarchy pattern, which is crucial for creating a familiar user experience and preventing a maze-like content structure.

This hierarchy consists of a clear layout:

• Home page
  • Landing page
    • Directory page, or
    • Content page, or
    • Parent content page,
      • Child content page

Site View – an easy way to maintain site structure

The content structure of a large website is never finished. Content teams need an easy way to add, remove, or move pages to ensure the site continues to meet users' changing needs. Using the Site View feature in Contensis, the project team were able to replicate the desired structure in a way that BCP can easily maintain.

Site View also played a vital role in replicating other features present in the GOV.UK Design System.

While the pages in the design system mostly used the same basic design, some required additional components or features depending on whether they had parent or child pages. To ensure consistency whilst allowing the team at BCP to build new pages quickly without needing to choose from several different page types, the project team created a standard page content type that could dynamically render different content depending on where it was nested in Site View. 

For example, when content pages are given child content pages within Site View, a table of contents and appropriate pagination are displayed. Similarly, each content page's "Related Content" sidebar is driven by other child pages of the parent node, creating meaningful connections and relationships between content.

A seamless migration journey

The migration of Bournemouth, Christchurch, and Poole Council's website from Classic Contensis to a content types and entries architecture was a crucial goal in our joint venture. This migration, which was closely linked to the adoption of the GOV.UK content hierarchy, gave us and BCP a unique opportunity to reassess the entire website's Information Architecture (IA).

Working collaboratively, we carefully restructured the IA to align seamlessly with the GOV.UK framework, ensuring a cohesive and user-centric experience. Every decision aims to improve user journeys and optimise the overall flow of information.

The migration process was a strategic blend of technology and human expertise. Over 15,000 pieces of content from BCP's existing website were migrated using a combination of web scraping, a bespoke application that formatted the data, and Contensis' Management API. This ensured smooth data transfer and proper content placement within the new IA, including mapping specific elements, such as contact details, into accessible components.

This migration was not a one-time event but a gradual evolution spread over two to three months. Iteratively, with each migration phase, more aspects of the website found their new home, ensuring a smooth transition. The final migration was completed two weeks before the website's launch, minimising disruption to BCP's editorial team.

Conclusion

The successful collaboration between Zengenti and BCP Council resulted in a modern, user-friendly, and accessible website that reflects the council's identity and effectively serves its users. This case study demonstrates the power of:

• Collaborative approach: Close collaboration between BCP Council and Zengenti, from discovery to deployment, ensuring a project aligned with the council's needs and objectives.
• User-centred design: By prioritising accessibility and adopting the GOV.UK Design System, BCP Council created a website that is easy to navigate and use for everyone.
• Content management platform selection: Utilising Content Types and Entries provided BCP Council with a future-proofed solution that is easy to manage and facilitates efficient content creation and updates.

The new website has received positive feedback from users and stakeholders, experiencing a significant increase in user engagement and improved website performance metrics, solidifying its success.