Public outcomes and scope
Before comparing suppliers, separate mandatory requirements from preferences. Assign a person who can answer each unresolved question.
- Name the audiences and priority resident tasks, with evidence for their importance.
- List languages, content types, council information and service directory needs.
- Identify external systems, data flows, authentication and integration owners.
- Record what is explicitly excluded, optional, planned or subject to discovery.
Capability and accessibility evidence
Request evidence against your scenarios. Record the date, environment, version, scope and known limitations of each demonstration or report.
- Observe resident and editor tasks using realistic content on small screens.
- Test keyboard navigation, focus visibility, forms and common error conditions.
- Agree the applicable accessibility target, audit scope and remediation ownership.
- Include documents, translations, videos and third-party journeys in the review.
- Distinguish automated checks from human assistive-technology testing.
Security, privacy and operation
Avoid accepting a broad assurance where a concrete responsibility or technical detail is needed. Do not send sensitive production data into a sales evaluation.
- Agree data classification, retention, hosting location and provider review.
- Map permissions, account lifecycle, logging and access review responsibilities.
- Request the backup, restore test, update and incident response approach.
- Identify integration credentials and the process for rotation and revocation.
- Define support hours, escalation, response targets and recovery expectations in writing.
Commercial terms and continuity
Have qualified local advisers review proposed agreements. A package name or a perpetual licence description cannot answer every usage and continuity question.
- Identify platform IP, content ownership, permitted use and third-party licences.
- Separate licence fees, implementation, hosting, support and optional work.
- Confirm version rights, updates and any perpetual licence limitations.
- Specify export formats, transition support, costs and deletion obligations.
- Check renewal, termination, dispute and change-control provisions.
Migration and acceptance
Define readiness before a delivery date becomes the only success measure. Keep a visible issue register and a named owner for each release decision.
- Approve a content inventory, URL map and redirect strategy.
- Sample migrated content and document accessibility against agreed criteria.
- Complete editor training and operating documentation.
- Record functional, accessibility, security and operational verification results.
- Agree launch authorization, rollback conditions and a post-launch review.
This guide is general planning information. It is not legal advice or an assurance that Astra Civic currently implements the capabilities described. Review the development status and verify requirements in your own evaluation.