Choosing a Digital Agency for the Public Sector

Choosing a public sector digital agency means judging suppliers against legal duties, procurement rules and a level of public scrutiny that most commercial buyers never face. A council, NHS trust or university has to serve everyone who relies on its services, including people using screen readers, people with little digital confidence and people who only visit when something has gone wrong. The tests below separate an agency that understands those obligations from one that simply has a public sector logo in its portfolio. They apply to a single campaign as much as to website design and digital services for public sector bodies over several years.

Each section covers one part of the decision, from accessibility and government standards through to procurement routes, contracts and support after launch. Working through them in order gives every shortlisted supplier the same questions, which makes the answers far easier to compare and score.

Why Choosing a Public Sector Digital Agency Is Different

Choosing a digital agency in the public sector is different because the buyer answers to residents, regulators and procurement law as well as to its own leadership. Contracts covered by the Procurement Act 2023 follow its rules and the Cabinet Office publishes guidance documents on the Procurement Act 2023 that cover everything from talking to the market before a tender through to award rules and contract changes.

The audience is also wider than any commercial website serves. A private company can choose its customers, while a council website has to work for every resident who needs to report a missed bin collection, apply for a school place or find out whether they qualify for support.

An agency that has only worked for commercial clients can underestimate all of this. It may be strong on brand and campaigns yet unprepared for accessibility monitoring, freedom of information requests or a board that wants value for money evidenced line by line.

Make Accessibility the First Test

Accessibility should be the first test because it is a legal requirement for public sector websites rather than a design preference. GOV.UK guidance on the accessibility requirements for public sector websites and apps says a website meets the legal requirements if it meets the WCAG 2.2 AA standard and publishes an accessibility statement. The same guidance is clear that you remain legally responsible for the website meeting those requirements even if you have outsourced it to a supplier.

That responsibility is why vague answers on accessibility should rule an agency out early. Ask each supplier how it tests against WCAG 2.2, whether testing includes screen readers and keyboard navigation as well as automated scanners and who drafts the accessibility statement at launch.

Priority Pixels develops its WordPress websites to WCAG 2.2 AA as a baseline and tests them with automated tools and manual audits before launch. Whichever agency you choose, ask to see the same evidence for a recent public sector build, along with the accessibility statement that was published for it.

Running an accessibility check on a live website from each shortlisted agency is a quick way to test its claims before you commit. The accessibility requirements for public sector websites set out the full list of duties to score each answer against, while WCAG 2.2 accessibility audits and remediation cover the work needed when an existing website falls short.

Look for Fluency in Government Service Standards

A capable public sector agency should know the published standards that government teams use to design and run services. The GOV.UK Service Standard sets out 14 points, from understanding users and their needs to making new source code open and operating a reliable service.

Local authorities and NHS bodies may not be assessed against it formally, but the habits it describes produce better services wherever they are used. Point 5 of the standard asks teams to make sure everyone can use the service, including people who do not have internet access or lack the skills or confidence to use it.

Ask shortlisted agencies which of these standards they work to and listen for familiarity rather than recital. An agency that talks naturally about user research, plain English and testing with real service users has worked in this world, while one that leads with brand concepts may produce something attractive that its audience struggles to use.

Content is where this shows most clearly. Public sector pages have to explain eligibility, deadlines and processes to people who are often stressed or in a hurry, which is why content design for public sector websites deserves its own question in the tender.

Know Which Procurement Route You Are Buying Through

The procurement route decides which agencies you can approach and how the contract is awarded, so confirm it with your commercial team before building a shortlist. GOV.UK guidance on how to define your purchasing strategy points buyers towards common government sourcing routes, including technology frameworks from the Government Commercial Agency. That guidance now names the Government Commercial Agency where it previously named Crown Commercial Service, following the new agency’s launch on 1 April 2026.

The Government Commercial Agency’s G-Cloud framework covers hosting, software and support, while buyers who need bespoke design and development are directed to its Digital Outcomes and Specialists framework. Confirming which framework fits the work before approaching suppliers avoids having to start the procurement again later.

Framework status is a route to market rather than a measure of quality. A capable agency outside a framework can still be appointed through a competitive quote or tender where your rules allow it, so check the route first and judge the agency on its evidence second.

Ask for Evidence Rather Than Claims

Evidence is the most reliable way to separate genuine public sector experience from a well written pitch. Many agencies describe themselves as sector specialists, so ask for proof that would take a capable supplier minutes to produce and a weaker one much longer.

Score this evidence more heavily than presentation quality, because the pitch shows the sales team while the evidence shows the delivery team. Ask as well who will do the work day to day, since the people in the pitch meeting are not always the designers and developers assigned to the project.

Security evidence belongs in the same request. The government’s Procurement Policy Note 09/14 made Cyber Essentials certification mandatory for central government contracts that involve handling personal information and providing certain ICT products and services, so ask for a current certificate whatever your own organisation requires.

Settle Ownership, Data and Exit Terms in the Contract

Ownership, data handling and exit arrangements should be written into the contract, because the default positions may not favour the public body. GOV.UK guidance on the ownership of copyright works explains that when you commission a work, the first owner of the copyright is the person or organisation that created it unless you agree otherwise in writing.

That can cover the design files, the custom code and the content produced for the project. The purchasing strategy guidance makes the same point for technology contracts, asking buyers to be explicit about who owns the intellectual property involved in delivering a service and to include a break clause that allows the contract to end with minimal exit costs where that is economic.

Personal data needs its own terms. The ICO’s guidance on contracts between controllers and processors says that whenever a controller uses a processor there must be a written contract in place, which applies whenever the agency hosts forms, mailing lists or analytics data for you.

Exit terms deserve the same detail as the build itself. Before signing, agree in writing what the agency hands over when the contract ends.

• The code, design files and content, with ownership assigned to your organisation
• Administrator access to the domain, hosting, analytics and content management system
• Documentation covering custom functionality, integrations and the hosting setup
• A full export of form submissions and any other data held for you
• A handover period with a named contact, so the next supplier is not starting from nothing

The platform decides how easily the work can move to another supplier when the contract ends. Open source platforms such as WordPress can be maintained by any competent supplier, which keeps future procurement open, as the overview of why WordPress powers government and council websites explains.

Priority Pixels hand codes its public sector WordPress websites without page builders or templates, so they are not tied to one supplier’s tools. Whichever agency you appoint, a clear exit list protects the next procurement as much as this one.

Plan for Support After Launch

Support after launch matters as much as the build, because accessibility and security both drift as content changes and software ages. Every new page, PDF and form can introduce a new barrier, so the contract should cover ongoing testing and a plan for keeping the accessibility statement accurate.

GOV.UK publishes a sample accessibility statement that shows what a statement should contain, some of which is legally required wording. Ask each agency how often it reviews the statements for the websites it supports and who updates them when new issues are found.

Training is the other half of keeping standards up. The editors who publish every week need to know how to write link text, add alternative text and structure headings, which is the practical work covered in the guide to implementing WCAG compliance in the public sector.

The right agency will be comfortable with every test here, because a well run public sector project has nothing to hide at the shortlist stage. A supplier that avoids naming its standards, resists written ownership terms or cannot describe how it supports websites after launch is already showing how the contract is likely to go.