Cheadle Town Council

Cheadle Town Council needed a website that did more than tick a box. They wanted a clean, modern platform that made it easy for residents to find information, stay informed and feel connected to their local community.

The brief

Public-sector sites have real constraints: accessibility, transparency, documents done properly. We met all of them while keeping the site warm and readable rather than institutional.

The council wanted a WordPress site that would hold minutes and other documents, post news alerts, share information about the town, and show a meeting calendar. Residents needed to find all of that without hunting through menus or downloading files just to see what was happening.

Preparation

Before we built anything, we looked at how people actually use council websites. Most visitors want three things: the latest news, the next meeting, and the documents from the last one. We planned the navigation around those jobs, with clear labels and no buried pages.

We also checked the accessibility requirements for public-sector bodies. That meant readable fonts, strong colour contrast, keyboard-friendly menus, and document formats that work with screen readers.

The work

We built the site on WordPress so council staff could update it themselves. The key parts were:

• A document library for minutes, agendas and policies, organised by committee and date
• A news section for alerts and announcements, with email notifications for subscribers
• A meeting calendar that shows upcoming dates and links to the relevant papers
• Pages about the town, the council and how residents can get involved

We kept the design simple and civic rather than flashy. The council's identity came through in the colours and crest, but the focus stayed on readable text and quick access to the things people need.

The result

The new site gives Cheadle Town Council a dependable home for their public information. Staff can publish minutes and news without calling us, and residents can find what they need in a couple of clicks.