Department of Social Services — website rebuild and migration to CivicTheme

Department of Social Services’ challenge

The Department of Social Services (DSS) needed to replace its 10-year-old Drupal 7 website, which no longer met accessibility standards and struggled with mobile responsiveness. This was especially important, as depending on the subject matter up to 60% of users accessed the website via mobile devices. The site also suffered from a decade of content accumulation, making it difficult for users to find current, relevant information.

Department of Social Services' transformation — building a mobile-first, accessible website

Salsa Digital worked with DSS and other contractors to rebuild its website on GovCMS SaaS using CivicTheme as the foundation. CivicTheme's capabilities were extended by customising almost every out-of-the-box component, plus the design and build of approximately 12 new components and 8 custom content types, all tailored to meet DSS's specific communication needs while maintaining accessibility standards. We also leveraged GovCMS SaaS hosting to streamline procurement, cybersecurity and privacy requirements.

Before Salsa joined the project, the DSS had begun extensive user research involving over 847 participants, including users with disabilities and diverse demographics across Australia. This research and user testing continued throughout the entire project and informed the site's design, content structure and functionality in response to test outcomes.  It also guided the adoption of the Australian Government Style Manual, tailored for DSS's often vulnerable audience groups.

The website’s technical upgrade included the implementation of a modern video player with Auslan support, the creation of a sub-brand system that allows different sections to adopt unique themes and the development of a sophisticated migration system that helped content editors effectively reorganise and consolidate information from various sources.

The outcomes — an award-winning, modern and inclusive website to serve all Australians

The new DSS website successfully met its accessibility and inclusivity goals, passing comprehensive testing and audits. A key achievement was the implementation of a streamlined resource presentation system that ensures all document variants are accessible from a single page, improving both user access and content governance efficiency.

The site's enhanced search functionality and improved information architecture made it easier for users to find relevant information quickly. This was particularly important for DSS's diverse user base, who rely on the website to access essential social services information. The implementation of a modern video player with Auslan support further enhanced accessibility, ensuring content is available to all users regardless of their needs.

For internal teams, the new platform significantly improved content management and governance. The sophisticated migration system helped content editors effectively reorganise years of accumulated content, while the sub-brand system offered flexibility in presenting different sections of the site. All these improvements were delivered within a challenging 11-month timeline, demonstrating the project's efficient execution.

In addition, Salsa Digital won the 2025 DrupalSouth Awards in the Government category for our work on the DSS website. The awards, which celebrate excellence in Drupal web development, recognised the project’s efforts in building an inclusive citizen experience for all users.