Defence and Veterans' Service Commission (DVSC)

The Defence and Veterans' Services Commission (DVSC) needed a website ready for its launch, with six weeks to plan, design, build, and test it. Morpht ran every phase in parallel and delivered a calm, accessible site that explains the Commission's work and supports public consultation from day one.

Ready for launch in six weeks

DVSC launched on time with a website that meets every requirement and gives it a ready-made template for future consultations.

  • Website delivered in six weeks, in time for the Commission's launch
  • Built to WCAG 2.2 AA accessibility standards
  • A reusable webform template, so new public consultations can be set up quickly with consistent data
  • Search boosting and a resource library that put authoritative content first
  • Data tables for recommendations and support services, plus a prominent 'Quick exit' button for user safety

About DVSC

Drupal 11 | Convivial GovCMS Bootstrap | Design | Web development

DVSC was established in 2025 following recommendation 122 of the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide. It provides independent oversight and evidence-based advice to improve suicide prevention and wellbeing outcomes for current and former Australian Defence Force (ADF) members.

In six weeks, Morpht had to develop the information architecture (IA), design the look and feel, build the functionality, and run user testing.

Visit the site

Screenshots of the DVSC website homepage, news and mobile design

The Solution

To meet the tight six-week delivery timeframe, Morpht adopted a parallel, outcome-focused delivery approach that balanced speed with quality and assurance. Discovery, design, development, and testing activities were run concurrently, allowing the team to rapidly iterate while maintaining alignment with DVSC expectations.

DVSC website on hand held devices

Convivial for GovCMS

To fast-track the design and build, we leveraged the capabilities, tools and structure of our Convivial for GovCMS starter site. We then prioritised additional core functionality to support both transparency and user safety. This included structured data tables to present recommendations and support services clearly, improved site search to help users quickly locate information, and a prominent ‘Quick exit’ feature to support users in distress.

Convivial for GovCMS website on an iMac

Discovery workshops

Early workshops explored the site's purpose, audiences, and their needs. They defined a clear IA so the site could communicate the Commission's role, functions, and priorities from launch.

Optimal workshop user testing on a macbook

Visual Design

The design needed to feel calm, safe, and inclusive. We considered colour, typography, photography, and iconography, and designed to WCAG 2.2 AA.

DVSC homepage design on an iMac

Consultations and webforms

Morpht built content types that display public consultation submissions clearly and consistently, making them easy to access for research. Submissions are collected through webforms tailored to each consultation, built from a standard template.

DVCS webform on a hand held device

Findability

Users need to find information without prior knowledge of the Commission. Search filters by content type and boosts core pages and resources, and a dedicated resource library supports discovery of publications and guidance.

DVSC search page on a macbook
testimonial icon

Morpht was able to deliver high quality work in a tight timeframe. Morpht communicated with the project team frequently and clearly, delivered on multiple phases of the project concurrently, and met all expected standards.

The rigorous approach Morpht took to scoping the project and the effective use of digital collaboration tools, helped define and focus the website’s structure and tone. The Morpht team worked flexibly, exploring options and ideas during the design process, while maintaining clarity about what could be achieved within the scope of the budget and timeframe. This made it easy for the project team to deliver the project on time and to a high standard.

Communications Team, Defence and Veterans’ Service Commission

Related case studies