I migrate government websites from WordPress to Payload + Astro

Sheet 01-03 — Government migration

For agencies, local governments and offices that need a faster, safer site without losing a single URL — scoped so it fits procurement, documented so the next team can run it.

Fig. 01-G — Operations circuit, with compliance calloutsScale 1:1 · Module 24
ORIGIN · YOUR ACCOUNT · YOUR REGIONpushdeploycached html · tlsmediaprobeswebhooksqlnightlysnapshotschecksGITrepo · yoursBUILDastro · wcag 2.2 aaEDGEcdn · tls · waf · ddosPUBLICbrowser · screen readerPAYLOADroles · drafts · versionsPOSTGRESdatabase · encryptedBACKUPSnightly · offsiteS3media · documentsMONITORuptime · ssl · errorsABC
A Accessibility — WCAG 2.2 AA templates in the Astro buildB Audit trail — roles, drafts and versions in PayloadC Data residency — the origin in your account, your region
01 — What you get

The parts list

Part 01

URL map preserved

Every existing URL is inventoried and either resolves or redirects. Search rankings and bookmarked links survive the move.

Part 02

Accessibility by default

WCAG 2.2 AA templates, keyboard navigation, contrast, required alt text in the editor — checked before launch, not after a complaint.

Part 03

Audit trail

Versions, drafts, roles and approvals in Payload. Who changed what, when, and the ability to roll it back.

Part 04

Data residency & ownership

Open-source stack in your AWS account, in the region you choose. No licence fees, no vendor lock-in, the repository is yours.

Part 05

Procurement-ready documents

Scope of work, deliverables, acceptance criteria and warranty — written so a bids and awards committee can read them.

Part 06

Static output from the edge

Pages are built once and served as HTML from a CDN. Announcement-day traffic is a cache hit, not an outage. Fewer moving parts to patch.

02 — Proof

Detail A — a public-sector build

Desktop · 1440
Tablet · 834
Mobile · 390
Case

[GOV CASE STUDY]

[One paragraph: what the office needed, what was migrated, what changed for editors and for the public.]

Payload + Astro · AWS · WCAG 2.2 AA
03 — How it goes

Six steps, documented at each tick

  1. 01Audit & inventory

    Every page, URL, plugin, form and integration. The cost of staying.

  2. 02Content model & roles

    Collections, fields, who may publish what. Signed off before design.

  3. 03Design on real content

    Templates drawn on the grid with your actual pages, not placeholders.

  4. 04Build & accessibility pass

    Payload + Astro; automated and manual WCAG checks; security review.

  5. 05Migrate, redirect, cut over

    Content moved, URL map tested, DNS switched in a window you choose.

  6. 06Care & handover

    Runbooks, training recording, and the Care Package if you want it.

04 — Fit check

Is this the right sheet?

This is for you if
  • Your site runs on WordPress and the plugin and hosting bill keeps growing.
  • You have to pass an accessibility or security audit this year.
  • The site must stay up on announcement day.
  • You need documentation that outlives a contract and a term of office.
Not for you if
  • You need the new site live this month — a careful migration takes [TIMEFRAME].
  • Your team wants a drag-and-drop page builder more than a content model.
  • The site is one page with a contact form. Keep WordPress; I’ll tidy it instead.
Do our editors have to learn a new CMS?
Yes, and it is simpler than most WordPress setups. Payload shows editors only the fields that exist. I train the team on the real site and leave a recording.
What happens to our old URLs?
They are mapped one by one during the audit. Redirects are tested against the inventory before cutover, and again after.
Who hosts it afterwards?
Your AWS account, or mine under the Care Package. Either way you own the code, the content and the data, and you can take it elsewhere.
05 — Request a scope

Send me the current site. I’ll send back a scope.

A link and a sentence about what the office needs is enough. You get an inventory, a phased scope and a quote you can attach to a procurement request.

What are you interested in?