Equality and Discrimination Ombudsman: New website makes it easier to get help in discrimination cases.
The Equality and Discrimination Ombudsman has a broad mandate. They provide guidance on legislation, supervise UN conventions, monitor employers' and authorities' equality work, and are active promoters of equality. All citizens in Norway are potential users.
The challenge
The Equality and Discrimination Ombudsman's (LDO) previous website, established in 2014 and updated in 2019, no longer met the needs of the users or the organization. A comprehensive assessment, based on internal analyses and an external user survey, concluded that a new platform was necessary to ensure a better solution.
The user survey revealed several weaknesses, including:
- Deficiencies in design and content structure
- Poor prioritization of user tasks
- Limited usability in CMS
- Insufficient fulfillment of requirements for public online services
The website's priority target groups include people with disabilities, ethnic minorities with limited Norwegian skills, and both older and younger users. This placed high demands on universal design.
Dekode was commissioned to carry out a preliminary project, develop a revitalized visual identity and deliver a completely new website based on WordPress.
Dekode have shown from the beginning of the collaboration that they are genuinely interested in who we are, our users and our needs. We have been challenged along the way, but always with a strategic or user-related perspective. This has led to good and relevant discussions, and a better result.
Edin Babic, Head of Communications at LDO
The result
The new website has a modern visual expression and has been developed with a flexible design and coding system, tailored for the Equality and Discrimination Ombudsman. The findings from the user survey and the pilot project have been carefully considered, resulting in a website that is:
- User-oriented and better structured
- In line with the ombudsman's identity and goals
A particular focus has been on accessibility for all. This includes thoughtful design choices, clear color contrasts, semantically correct code, and adaptations for universal design. In addition, the ombudsman has put significant effort into editorial work, such as ensuring good alt texts, a balanced use of Nynorsk and Bokmål, and fulfillment of other editorial requirements.
Since its launch in November, the response has been overwhelmingly positive, both from internal users and the target audience. For the editors, the website has revolutionized their working day – they can now focus on good communication, without having to fight a cumbersome CMS.
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