City of Newcastle - Community Engagement Strategy
January 2024
We worked with the City of Newcastle to produce a range of accessible versions of their Community Engagement Strategy. The strategy explains how City of Newcastle will work with the community to improve their plans, policies, programs, activities and services.
The strategy was aided by community consultation via an online survey and a community workshop. The feedback from the City of Newcastle community informed the 5 principles outlined in the strategy.
We produced the following versions of City of Newcastle's Community Engagement Strategy:
- Accessible PDF of original strategy
- HTML version of original strategy
- Easy Read version
- Easy Read HTML version
Part of the feedback City of Newcastle received from their community was the need to make their information accessible to everyone. City of Newcastle took this feedback seriously throughout the project and remain committed to accessibility and the betterment of their community.
You can find the Community Engagement Strategy documents on the City of Newcastle website.
We have high standards when it comes to delivering accessible documents. We’re experts in providing accessible information through the publication of:
- Microsoft Word documents
- PDF files
- HTML webpages.
We follow the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2 Level AA for the production of accessible documents. We also adhere to the publishing standards of individual organisations and follow the advice of the Australian Government Digital Transformation Agency.
Importantly, we urge organisations not to rely on accessible PDFs alone. While the PDF format makes sure the document will visually look the same across different computers, the format can exclude people with disability and makes it harder for website visitors to access the information.
This is largely because:
- Not all versions of all screen readers read out PDFs consistently.
- PDF documents are difficult to use for people using mobile devices.
For more on the issues with accessibility of PDFs, see our article about PDF viewer applications and screen readers.
We strongly recommend publishing your document in HTML, as webpages. Webpages are the most accessible format for information published online. Several government bodies also advocate for publishing content as webpages. This includes the Victorian Government, NSW Government, SA Government, Queensland Government and the Australian Government.
By publishing your document as webpages alongside the accessible PDF version, you can make your information easier to access for everyone, especially people who use mobile devices and people who are time poor.
Read more about the benefits of publishing your documents as webpages.
Read our introduction guide to HTML.
We can create an HTML version of your content and can also publish and host it for you to make this a straightforward process. We even create Easy Read HTML.
An example of our work in this area
Did you know?
We also offer training workshops in the production of accessible documents. Visit our training workshops page to find out more.
