Government digital projects demand more than just technical competence. They require a partner who understands compliance, public sector risk, and the unique lifecycle of government infrastructure. We have put together the following checklist to help guide government agencies through the procurement process.
Complex requirements, straightforward websites
Government and enterprise sites carry a lot: thousands of pages, strict accessibility rules, data from other systems, and policy changes that arrive on short notice. We build Drupal sites that carry that weight without becoming hard to run.
We usually start with Convivial for GovCMS, our personalisation-enabled, feature-rich starter site, built on thousands of hours of development work and optimised for the GovCMS platform. Your budget goes into what's specific to you, not into rebuilding what's already solved.
What you get:
- A faster start. Accessible, ready-made components are in place from day one.
- Editors in control. Your team builds and updates pages from ready-made components, without a developer.
- Room to grow. Add search, personalisation, or AI tools later without starting again.
Our approach to Drupal development
Start from proven foundations
We begin with Convivial for GovCMS and established design systems, including the Australian Government Design System and the NSW Digital Design System. Accessible, consistent pages are in place early, so more of the project goes to what's specific to you.
Build with components your editors can use
Pages are assembled from reusable components with built-in layout and style options. Your team can create and rearrange pages without a developer, and the design stays on brand.
Add custom functionality where it counts
Some requirements don't fit a template, such as a data import, a search tool, or a link to another system. Our senior developers build these as custom Drupal modules that follow Drupal standards, so they're easy to maintain.
Keep one team from kick-off to support
Designers, architects, developers, themers, and project managers can work with your team across every phase, from the first workshop through to launch and support.
Open-source modules we maintain
We give back to the Drupal community. We take pride in being “makers” of Drupal and other projects. These modules are free to use, and we use them in our own work.
Adds options such as background images and video to page components, without custom code.
Shows different content to different visitors based on their interests.
Convivial Gov is a Drupal site template for government, with a drag-and-drop page builder and a library of accessible, ready-made components.
Connects Drupal to the Recombee recommendation service, so visitors see content based on their past behaviour and what similar visitors found useful.
Lets editors choose how a list of content appears, such as cards or teasers.
Lets editors apply a style, such as a colour palette, to a component.
Controls how data from external services appears on the page.
Frequently asked questions
Drupal is an open-source content management system (CMS) with more than 25 years of continuous development. It is best suited for organisations that need enterprise-grade security, complex content architecture, multilingual support, fine-grained access controls, and the ability to integrate with a wide ecosystem of third-party services. Government agencies, universities, healthcare systems, and large enterprises consistently choose Drupal for high-stakes digital properties where compliance, scalability, and structured content are non-negotiable.
Yes. Drupal is the platform behind GovCMS, the Australian Government's whole-of-government web platform. GovCMS SaaS comes with IRAP-assessed security, managed updates, and monitoring, and the Drupal Security Team publishes advisories and patches on a set schedule. We add our own hardening checklist to meet federal and state requirements.
Drupal CMS is a ready-to-use version of Drupal built for marketers and content teams. It adds site templates and a visual page builder, Drupal Canvas, on top of Drupal core. Version 2.0, released in January 2026, also adds AI-assisted tools. Your team can handle more everyday content and design tasks without a developer, while keeping Drupal's enterprise foundations.
Yes. Drupal provides JSON:API and GraphQL, so it can supply content to a frontend built in React, Next.js, or another framework, as well as to apps and digital signs. You keep Drupal's editorial workflows and governance. We'll talk through whether it suits your project during discovery.
Yes. GovCMS SaaS suits most content-led websites and comes with platform maintenance from the GovCMS team. PaaS gives more room for custom modules and complex integrations. We recommend a tier during discovery, based on what your site needs to do.
Yes, if you're a government agency. We're a member of the Drupal Services Panel across all three categories, including DXP, and you can engage us directly through the panel and BuyICT, with no open tender required. The current panel arrangement runs until 30 September 2027.
Yes. Many of our Australian team members hold a baseline security clearance, and every staff member has a Federal Police check before starting a project. That means onboarding for federal projects doesn't hold up your start.
Case studies
Case study
Morpht built the Australian Hydrographic Office's new GovCMS website on a condensed schedule, making charts, Notices to Mariners and tide tables easier to find.
Case study
Morpht upgraded the AFSA and PPSR websites with new navigation, faster load times and WCAG 2.1 AA accessibility, winning two GovCMS Community Awards in 2025.
Case study
Morpht delivered the Defence and Veterans' Services Commission website in six weeks for its launch, built to WCAG 2.2 AA with a reusable consultation webform.
Case study
Morpht rebuilt the Reef Knowledge System on GovCMS SaaS with a Resource Hub, topic navigation and personalised recommendations. Runner-up in two Splash Awards.
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