Morpht Delivers NOCS Website Redesign in Three Weeks for National Child Safety Campaign

Few government digital service projects carry the weight of responsibility that comes with child safety initiatives. When the National Office for Child Safety (NOCS) needed to completely overhaul their website in just three weeks to support the launch of their national "One Talk at a Time" campaign, they turned to Morpht, a decision that would result in not just a successful launch, but a 745% increase in website views and multiple prestigious awards.

Three Weeks to Transform a Critical Resource

The National Office for Child Safety, established in response to the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse, serves a vital role in protecting Australian children and supporting survivors. Their website functions as more than just an information portal; it's a lifeline for families, educators, and support services across the nation.

With the "One Talk at a Time" national campaign scheduled to launch in just three weeks, NOCS faced a critical challenge. Their existing website needed a complete transformation: a fresh visual design, improved user experience, restructured information architecture, and enhanced functionality for their resource library and support service directory, all while maintaining the sensitivity and accessibility required for such important content.

"NOCS had a tight deadline," explains the case study. "With a new national campaign launching in 3 weeks, Morpht had to re-design and implement the new look and feel of the site as well as improve the IA structure and conduct user testing."

Building on Proven Architecture

Morpht's approach to this high-pressure project was grounded in strategic preparation and proven methodologies. The team leveraged their existing relationship with the Attorney-General's Department and their deep expertise with the GovCMS Convivial platform.

"The National Office for Child Safety (NOCS) website is part of the Attorney-General's Department (AGD) suite of sites managed by Morpht, all of which use a personalised Convivial GovCMS whitelabel," notes Amber Henry, Project Manager at Morpht. "This consistent foundation meant we could hit the ground running. We're highly experienced with the available components, modifiers, and design system, allowing us to quickly implement a fresh look and feel."

This foundational knowledge proved crucial in meeting the aggressive timeline while maintaining quality standards.

Parallel Execution

Rather than following a traditional sequential approach, Morpht implemented a parallel workflow strategy that would become a defining characteristic of their project management methodology.

"From the outset, we worked in parallel streams," Amber explains. "Key site functionality, like updates to content types, faceted search, the resource hub, and services directory, was released to production as soon as it was ready. This phased approach allowed us to deliver the design uplift five days before the campaign launch, giving space to resolve any last-minute issues and ensure all campaign content was in place and ready for a smooth go-live."

This approach not only accelerated delivery but also provided built-in risk management, ensuring that if issues arose with one component, other elements could continue progressing independently.

User-Centered Design Under Embargo Conditions

One of the unique challenges of this project was working with limited campaign assets due to embargo restrictions. The "One Talk at a Time" campaign materials were highly confidential, requiring Morpht to design and build while operating with incomplete visual references.

"Close collaboration with the NOCS team and key stakeholders was crucial, especially since the One Talk at a Time campaign was embargoed and we had limited visual assets to work with," Amber recalls. "NOCS guided us on what would support the campaign's goals, providing feedback on layout, tone, and content positioning."

Despite these constraints, Morpht delivered a design that was described in their brief as "modern, vibrant, and refreshingly non-corporate." The team focused on brand colors and available design elements to craft a coherent aesthetic that added depth and movement to page layouts while maintaining the sensitivity required for child safety communications.

Building Bridges to Critical Resources

The NOCS website houses over 220 resources and serves multiple stakeholder groups, from parents and educators to policymakers and support service providers. Restructuring this complex information ecosystem required both strategic thinking and validation through user testing.

"To better align the site with the campaign and broader child safety objectives, we reworked the information architecture. We defined key user tasks across audiences, then conducted Tree Testing to validate the new structure. These insights informed a restructured sitemap, improved navigation, and the introduction of a mega menu to help users quickly access relevant content."

said Amber.

This research-driven approach ensured that the new structure would actually improve user outcomes rather than simply looking better on paper. The team conducted Tree Testing to validate their new information architecture and identify weak spots before implementation.

Search and Directory Enhancements

Beyond visual improvements, Morpht addressed critical functionality issues that were hampering user experience. The original site suffered from poor search quality and a static, difficult-to-use service directory.

For search improvements, Morpht implemented Solr search with strategic boosting on key content types. They also introduced a "key phrases" field, giving content editors more control over search relevance.

"To ensure the improved search experience met user expectations, we asked NOCS to provide a list of 10–15 key resources and the search terms they expected users to use," Amber notes. "We validated the improvements by comparing results across different environments, testing the impact of edits like keyword inclusion in summaries, title tweaks, and strategic tagging."

The service directory transformation was equally significant. What had been a static list became a dynamic, filterable resource with faceted search capabilities, supporting users in finding services by location, service type, and specialist services provided.

Client Independence Through Strategic Training

A critical but often overlooked aspect of successful digital transformations is ensuring clients can maintain and evolve their systems independently. Morpht's approach to this challenge demonstrates their commitment to long-term partnership rather than dependency.

"We enhanced the existing Resource content type by adding a new Topic field and refining the resource categories to improve search and filtering," Amber explains. "These changes were deployed as soon as they were tested, giving the NOCS team early access to update and curate resources while the rest of the project was still underway."

This early access strategy had multiple benefits. It allowed the NOCS team to become familiar with the new system before launch pressure mounted, and ensured that critical resources were already updated and optimized by go-live.

Government websites must be built to evolve with changing policies, new campaigns, and emerging needs. Morpht's approach to the NOCS project prioritized flexibility and scalability from the outset.

"The site was built with flexibility and scalability in mind," Amber notes. "Leveraging the Australian Government Design System and Convivial GovCMS framework gave us a robust foundation. The AGD web services team was trained to use the full range of components, modifiers, and layouts, enabling them to create new campaign pages, landing pages, and update the site's IA as needed, without requiring developer intervention."

This modular approach ensures that future campaigns and policy updates can be implemented efficiently without requiring complete redevelopment or extensive external support.

Beyond Launch Metrics

The immediate success of the NOCS website transformation was undeniable. In the three weeks following the campaign launch, the website recorded over 120,000 views, a staggering 745% increase. But perhaps more importantly, the project's excellence was recognized across the industry with multiple prestigious awards:

• Splash Awards 2023: Winner of Best in Show and Government - Federal
• Splash Awards 2024: Winner and Runner up in Design & User Experience  
• Australian Web Awards 2024: Finalist in Community & Culture, Government and Drupal categories

These accolades reflect not just aesthetic achievement, but the comprehensive success of user experience improvements, technical innovation, and strategic implementation.

Lessons Learned

The NOCS project has had lasting impact on Morpht's approach to high-stakes government digital projects. The lessons learned continue to influence their methodology and client service delivery.

"One of the key lessons from the NOCS project was the benefit of working in parallel phases," Amber reflects. "By separating functional updates from the design uplift, we were able to move faster while keeping quality in check. It also meant the NOCS team could start working in the CMS early, which helped with content readiness and gave them more confidence by the time we launched."

This parallel approach has become a cornerstone of Morpht's project management philosophy: 

"We've taken this phased approach into other projects too, delivering in smaller, manageable chunks helps reduce risk, keeps things moving, and gives stakeholders regular touchpoints to stay involved and informed. It's a practical and flexible way to work, especially when timelines are tight."

While the technical and process innovations of the NOCS project are impressive, it's important to remember the ultimate purpose of this work. The National Office for Child Safety website serves as a critical resource for protecting children and supporting survivors of abuse. The dramatic increase in website engagement following the launch suggests that improved accessibility and user experience are translating into real-world impact.

The success of the "One Talk at a Time" campaign launch, supported by the transformed website, demonstrates how thoughtful digital design can amplify important social messages and make critical resources more accessible to those who need them most.

A Blueprint for Government Digital Excellence

The NOCS website transformation represents more than just a successful project delivery under pressure. It provides a blueprint for how government digital services can be reimagined and delivered efficiently while maintaining the highest standards of quality and accessibility.

Morpht's approach combining deep technical expertise with user-centered design, parallel workflow management, and a commitment to client empowerment offers valuable lessons for any organization facing complex digital transformation challenges. Most importantly, it demonstrates that even under the most challenging timelines, it's possible to deliver solutions that not only meet immediate needs but provide a foundation for long-term success and growth.

The recognition this project has received across multiple industry awards validates not just the aesthetic and technical achievements, but the comprehensive excellence of the strategic approach, user experience improvements, and measurable impact on the organization's mission-critical goals.