Content review checklist
Most government web pages have no real quality gate before they go live. The writing gets done, the subject matter expert signs off, legal clears it — and then it goes live. Nobody checks whether a regular person can understand it, whether the heading hierarchy is broken, or whether the page has a review date attached to it.
This checklist gives content designers, digital team leads, and anyone responsible for quality-checking government web content a shared, explicit standard — so it is easier to say "this is not ready yet" without it feeling personal. It covers the core requirements Australian government websites must meet: plain language, accessibility, structure, governance, and findability. The requirements draw on the Australian Government Style Manual and WCAG 2.2 Level AA — mandatory under the Disability Discrimination Act 1992.
Download the checklist
Instructions
For each item, mark Pass, Fail, or N/A.
If a page fails any item in Section 1 (User task and purpose) or Section 3 (Accessibility), do not publish until those items are resolved.
Use this checklist as a standalone quality gate, adapt it to your agency's clearance workflow, or combine it with a content governance framework.
Replace [bracketed text] with your agency's specific details.
The summary table in the PDF gives you a one-page snapshot suitable for governance records.
What’s in the checklist
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Every page must have a clear primary user task. If you cannot name it, the page is not ready.
The primary user task is clearly defined. State the user's goal in one sentence: [What is the user trying to do on this page?]
The page answers that task directly. The opening paragraph addresses the user's need without preamble.
Scope is appropriate. The page covers what the user needs for this task — not more, not less. Duplicate or adjacent content has been identified and resolved.
The page title matches user intent. The title reflects what the user is looking for, not the organisational structure or the team's name for the program.
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Requirement: Australian Government Style Manual; WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 3.1.5 (Reading Level) for complex content.
Reading level is appropriate. Content reads at or below an Australian Year 8 reading level, or has a clear, justified reason for technical language.
No jargon without explanation. All acronyms are spelled out on first use. Technical terms are explained or linked.
Active voice is used throughout. Passive constructions have been removed or justified. ("Applications are assessed by the department" → "We assess applications within [X] business days.")
Sentences are short. Most sentences are under 25 words. No sentence exceeds 40 words without a clear editorial reason.
Contractions are used appropriately. "You cannot apply" rather than "Applications cannot be made." Reserve "can't" and similar for conversational content, not formal legal copy.
"This page" constructions have been removed. Opening paragraphs do not begin with "This page provides information about..." or similar.
Numbers, dates, and quantities are formatted correctly. Following Style Manual guidance: numerals for 2 and above. Dates in the form [Day Month Year].
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Requirement: WCAG 2.2 Level AA — mandatory for Australian government websites under the Disability Discrimination Act 1992.
Heading hierarchy is correct. One H1 per page. Headings follow a logical H2 → H3 hierarchy with no levels skipped.
All images have meaningful alt text. Decorative images are marked null (alt=""). Informational images describe what the image conveys, not just what it depicts.
Links are descriptive. No "click here" or "read more" links. Each link describes the destination or the action.
Colour is not the only visual indicator. No information is conveyed by colour alone.
Tables are used for data, not layout. All tables have appropriate headers. Tables include a caption where the content is not self-evident.
Documents (PDFs, Word files) meet accessibility standards. Tagged, readable by screen readers, with document titles set. If accessibility cannot be confirmed, an accessible HTML alternative is provided.
Video and audio content has captions or transcripts. Auto-generated captions have been reviewed and corrected before publication.
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The most important information appears first. The opening paragraph contains the key message or action. No long preamble before the point.
Headings work as a skim path. A reader skimming only the headings can understand the page structure and find what they need.
Paragraphs are short. Maximum 3 sentences per paragraph. One idea per paragraph.
Lists are used appropriately. Lists contain parallel items. Lists of two or fewer items are written as prose. Lists do not substitute for structured argument.
Calls to action are clear. If the user needs to do something, the action is named directly: "Apply online," "Download the form," "Call [phone number]."
Page length is justified. If the page is long, it is because the user needs all of the content — not because it was easier to keep everything in one place.
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Content ownership is confirmed. The person accountable for keeping this page accurate is identified: [Name, role, team].
Subject matter expert sign-off is complete. [SME name, date confirmed].
Legal or compliance clearance is complete (if required). [Clearance provided by, date].
Review and expiry date is set. This page will be reviewed again by [Date]. If content becomes outdated before that date, [Name] is responsible for flagging it.
The page has been approved for publication. Approved by: [Name, role]. Date.
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Page title includes the primary search term. The H1 title reflects how users would search for this content, not how the agency refers to the program internally.
Meta description is written. Plain language, under 160 characters, includes the primary search term, and makes the value of clicking clear.
Internal links are in place. Where relevant, the page links to closely related pages on the same site. No orphaned pages without inbound links.
Redirects are set (if applicable). If this page replaces an existing URL, a 301 redirect has been configured from the old URL.