culture.gov.au

Connecting you with Australian culture online

Application and interpretation of the policy

(See also: Website collection policy )

The prime purpose of the Portal is to provide access to information and services which may be of value to the user. For this reason, the criteria set out in the website collection policy may be applied with some flexibility and some variation from site to site.

Contents:

• Assessment of significance
• Applying essential criteria
• Applying desirable criteria
• Multiple categories
• Process for submitting a website
• Annual review
• Websites we do not accept

Assessment of significance

Values which may be identified as significant for the collection of websites include:

• historical significance by association with people, events, places and themes;
• aesthetic significance based on craftsmanship, style, technical excellence, beauty, demonstration of skill, and quality of design and execution;
• research significance if there is major potential for further examination or study; and
• social significance where there is evidence of community value or esteem.

These high level concepts help establish the attributes of 'quality websites' collected by the Portal. These concepts are also used by archives, galleries, libraries, museums and other collecting institutions.

Applying essential criteria

Questions and considerations for determining quality websites, based on the essential criteria, Item 2.1 of the website collection policy:

General

• Is the website Australian?
• Does the website have significance?

Accessibility

• Does the website apply recognised publishing and technical standards (such as W3C certification)?
• Can the website be navigated using a keyboard?
• Is information lost if the website is viewed without images?

About accessibility
The basic purpose of web accessibility is to allow people with disabilities to access the web, although accessible design also has benefits for all web users. For more information, please see the W3C Introduction to Web Accessibility.

We strongly recommend that websites comply with all Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) - both to allow the widest range of people to access online information, and to help websites to reach the widest possible audience.

When considering websites for listing on the Portal, we require websites to meet at least the following basic standards of accessibility, which appear (in slightly different forms) in both the current version of the guidelines, WCAG 1.0, and the newer version currently under development, WCAG 2.0:

• Make all functionality available from a keyboard (also in WCAG 2.0)
  This involves being able to navigate the website and access information and services without using a mouse. Basic keyboard navigation includes using: the Tab key to scroll through links (and other objects) on a page; Enter to follow a link; and Page Up/Down or arrow keys to scroll through the contents of a page.
  
  
• Provide text alternatives for any non-text content (also in WCAG 2.0)
  This is particularly applicable to images which include text or other information necessary to understanding or navigating the site.

Authenticity

• Is information well-documented, clearly authored and accurate?

Community benefit

• Does the website offer community benefit?
• Is the website up-to-date?

Focus

• Is the website concerned primarily with Australian culture and recreation?
• Does the website improve access to Australian cultural and recreation information?
• Does the website provide comprehensive information?

Usability

• Does the website offer helpful and functional navigation and links?
• Is the website easy to use?
• Is information on the website easy to find?

Applying desirable criteria

Additional questions which help us determine quality websites, based on the desirable criteria, Item 2.2 of the collection policy:

• Does the website have visual appeal?
• Does the website provide evidence of continuity, such as providing archived material?
• Is there evidence of collaboration within the website, such as with other related organisations?
• Does the website display originality, such as by introducing new web functionality?
• Does the website display complex information in a simple way?

Multiple categories

We categorise websites mainly according to their primary function (see our Thesaurus definitions) but also according to their most closely related categories. For example, 'Cinema Papers' is primarily 'print, radio and tv' but is closely related to 'film and video' and can also be found under that category.

Process for submitting a website

Please see our submit a website page.

Annual review

It is intended that we will review the website collection policy each year between July and September.

Websites we do not accept

As part of being administered by the Australian Government Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts we do not accept websites that include any of the following inappropriate content:

• pornographic, obscene, offensive or racist material;
• abusive, racist, defamatory or otherwise objectionable language;
• online gambling or betting sites;
• sites that solicit funds which are used for illegal or terrorist activities;
• material that violates the rights or privacy of any person; and/or
• websites that provide direct links to other inappropriate websites.

Please refer to our disclaimer notice and complaints and classification of content page.