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Spatial Sites / MicroSites

Make complex information easy to act on.

We turn pension guides, benefit booklets and member communications into accessible, interactive microsites built for large organisations and the people they serve.

ContactExplore concepts
  • Pension education
  • Employee benefits
  • Member communications
  • WCAG 2.2 AA as the design and testing target

The idea

From a page people skim to a journey they finish.

  1. Step 1
  2. Step 2, current
  3. Step 3
  4. Step 4
  5. Step 5

Step 2 of 5

What goes in each month

You pay a percentage of your pay, your employer adds more, and the government adds tax relief.

If you pay £80, tax relief adds £20, so £100 goes into your pension.

Tax relief Money that would have gone to the government as tax, added to your pension instead.

Next: check your payslip
On the left, a dense page from a 36-page member guide about contributions. On the right, the same information as one step of a guided microsite.
  1. 01 A plain-language summary first
  2. 02 A worked example in real amounts
  3. 03 Terms explained where they appear
  4. 04 One clear next step

Why a microsite

Important information, too often left unread.

Pension providers, insurers, administrators and employers publish a great deal of information people genuinely need: how a scheme works, what a statement means, what to do when life changes. Much of it is versioned for different employers, schemes or member groups.

A microsite can take someone straight to the parts that apply to them, explain unfamiliar terms where they appear, and finish with a clear next step. The same foundation can then be adapted for each client, scheme or campaign.

  • 01

    Clearer for people

    Plain language, useful interactions and a route through complex decisions.

  • 02

    Practical at scale

    A reusable system that adapts to different clients, schemes, campaigns and content updates.

  • 03

    Built to be used

    Fast, accessible, measurable journeys with a clear next step.

Live demos

Independent Spatial Sites concepts. None is commissioned or endorsed by the company it is for. Names identify the public information each study responds to.

Browse

Five organisations, five ideas each.

Each company has five different concepts, not five colour schemes. Live demos are marked. The rest are concept directions, published as their demos are finished.

Showing all 25 concepts

What a microsite can include

Tools that help people understand, not decorate.

  • Explainers

    One idea at a time, with the detail a click away.

  • Checklists

    What to gather, what to do, ticked off as you go.

  • Decision guides

    Questions that bring the points that apply to the top.

  • Illustrative calculators

    Worked examples with their assumptions written beside them.

  • Timelines

    What happens when, and what to do at each stage.

  • Search

    Answers found in the reader's own words.

  • Accessible video

    Captions, transcripts and chapters as standard.

  • FAQs

    The questions people actually ask, answered plainly.

  • Routes to support

    The right contact, form or service at the end of every journey.

A project can include content strategy, design, interactive tools, implementation, accessibility testing, analytics and ongoing content updates. Scope and price are agreed through a conversation.

Built for every reader

Designed for WCAG 2.2 AA from the first sketch.

Accessibility is part of the design, not a check at the end. These are the commitments every microsite we build starts from.

People with impaired vision

  • Text that reflows at 400% zoom without sideways scrolling
  • Contrast of at least 4.5:1 for text and 3:1 for controls
  • Meaningful headings, landmarks and link text for screen readers
  • Text alternatives for every image, chart and diagram

People with motor difficulties

  • Everything works with a keyboard alone, with a visible focus outline
  • Targets at least 24 by 24 pixels, with space between them
  • No interaction that needs hover, drag or precise timing

People with cognitive or learning disabilities

  • A plain-language summary at the top of every page
  • Technical terms defined where they appear
  • One idea at a time, consistent navigation and clear next steps
  • Forms with clear labels, helpful errors and no time limits

People who are deaf or have impaired hearing

  • Captions and transcripts for every video
  • No information given only by sound

How each microsite is checked

  1. Automated checks with axe-core against the WCAG 2.2 A and AA rules
  2. A full keyboard-only review of every journey
  3. A screen reader review by a person (NVDA, JAWS or VoiceOver)
  4. Zoom, reflow and reduced-motion checks on phone and desktop

We describe a microsite as meeting WCAG 2.2 AA only once it has passed all four. Until then, each concept page says exactly which checks it has had. The standard is the W3C's Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.2, the same level the GOV.UK accessibility requirements set for public sector sites.

Made for your organisation

Your brand, your content, your sign-off.

  • Your branding

    Built in your approved typefaces, colours and imagery, or a sub-brand for a campaign.

  • Your content

    Shaped from the guides and materials you already have, with your subject experts.

  • Your approvals

    Review stages and sign-off points agreed at the start, so compliance and legal review fit the plan.

  • Your publishing

    Hosted where you need it: with us, on your infrastructure, or handed over to your team.

  • Your updates

    Routine changes handled by us or by your team, without a rebuild.

Delivery

From complicated brief to live microsite.

Corporate communications pass through content, brand, compliance, accessibility and IT before anyone sees them. We make those steps part of the build.

  1. 01

    Everyone needs to approve it.

    Show the journey early with a working prototype. Give stakeholders clear review stages and agreed sign-off points.

  2. 02

    Every client needs their own version.

    Start with a reusable foundation, then adapt the approved branding, content, scheme details and interactions for each client.

  3. 03

    The information is hard to untangle.

    Shape existing guides and support materials around the questions people actually have. Keep subject experts involved so the simpler experience stays accurate.

  4. 04

    Accessibility cannot wait until launch.

    Design for keyboard, screen reader, low-vision and reduced-motion use from the beginning. Target WCAG 2.2 AA and test each finished microsite before making accessibility claims.

  5. 05

    Publishing and updates get stuck.

    Agree the hosting, ownership, review and update process as part of the project. Make routine content changes manageable after launch.

  6. 06

    We need to know whether it worked.

    Define the visitor's intended task, give them a clear next step, and measure where they succeed or need more help.

Bring us one document, one audience and the problem it needs to solve.

Contact

Process

Talk, shape, build, review, launch.

  1. 01

    Talk

    A short conversation about the information, the audience and what success looks like.

  2. 02

    Shape

    We map the questions people have, agree the journey and show a working prototype early.

  3. 03

    Build

    Design, content and interactive tools built on a reusable, accessible foundation.

  4. 04

    Review

    Your subject experts, compliance and accessibility checks at agreed sign-off points.

  5. 05

    Launch and improve

    Live on agreed hosting, measured against the intended task, and updated as things change.

Have a guide people need to understand? Let's make it something they can use.

Contact

The concepts on this page are independent Spatial Sites studies. They are not commissioned or endorsed by the companies named, and use no company logos.