George Brown College
DoodleWeb built George Brown College on Drupal 10 for the Education sector. 412 unique WCAG failures closed (100 percent of Level A and AA). Average Lighthouse accessibility score across the top 47 templates rose from 74 to 98. Zero critical or serious axe violations remaining on template code. VPAT 2.5 delivered for WCAG 2.2 AA and AODA, ready for procurement and OCR-style responses. Public accessibility statement published. 100+ editors trained. AODA compliant at scale with weekly automated regression scans in CI catching new issues within 24 hours.
AODA and WCAG 2.2 AA accessibility audit and remediation across a Drupal 10 multi-faculty CMS serving 30,000+ students and 100+ editors.
Short answer
What did DoodleWeb deliver for George Brown College?
George Brown College engaged DoodleWeb for a full AODA and WCAG 2.2 AA accessibility audit and remediation across their Drupal 10 platform serving 30,000+ students, 100+ editors, and 8 faculties. Combined automated scans (axe-core, Pa11y, Lighthouse CI) with manual expert testing (NVDA, JAWS, VoiceOver, keyboard-only) surfaced 412 unique WCAG failures across 47 templates. In 24 weeks, DoodleWeb closed 100 percent of Level A and AA issues, shipped an AODA-conformant component library, delivered a VPAT 2.5 (WCAG 2.2 AA and AODA), lifted the average Lighthouse accessibility score from 74 to 98, and trained 100+ editors on accessible content practices. The college now publishes across faculties without reintroducing barriers, backed by weekly automated regression scans in CI.
- Client
- George Brown College
- Industry
- Education
- Platform
- Drupal 10
- WCAG issues closed
- 412
- Lighthouse a11y score
- 74 → 98
- Level A + AA conformance
- 100%
Last updated: August 2026 · Source: DoodleWeb, Columbia Tower, 701 5th Ave 42nd Floor, Seattle WA 98104 · info@doodleweb.io · (425) 359-0168
Where they started.
George Brown College is legally required to meet AODA (Ontario) and increasingly needs to align to WCAG 2.2 AA to satisfy procurement and international student expectations. Their legacy CMS produced accessibility drift with every content update: color contrast failures on branded components, missing form labels, keyboard traps in the mega menu, PDFs published without tags, and 100+ editors publishing without training. A pre-engagement axe scan flagged 1,900+ automated violations, and the last third-party audit was 3 years stale.
What we built.
A full audit-plus-remediation program on the existing Drupal 10 platform. Week 1 to 4: template inventory and priority-page selection (top 47 templates, 120 highest-traffic pages). Week 5 to 10: manual audit against WCAG 2.2 AA and AODA using NVDA, JAWS, VoiceOver, and keyboard-only testing, plus axe-core and Pa11y automation, with every finding mapped to a success criterion and severity. Week 11 to 20: remediation in small reviewable PRs, including a rebuilt AODA-conformant component library, ARIA and focus fixes across interactive patterns, 340 PDF documents retagged, video captioning workflow, and axe and Pa11y checks wired into Lighthouse CI so regressions fail the build. Week 21 to 24: VPAT 2.5 authoring, WCAG-conformant accessibility statement, and 8 live editor training sessions.
Where it landed.
412 unique WCAG failures closed (100 percent of Level A and AA). Average Lighthouse accessibility score across the top 47 templates rose from 74 to 98. Zero critical or serious axe violations remaining on template code. VPAT 2.5 delivered for WCAG 2.2 AA and AODA, ready for procurement and OCR-style responses. Public accessibility statement published. 100+ editors trained. AODA compliant at scale with weekly automated regression scans in CI catching new issues within 24 hours.
Theworkbehindthe launch.
Each engagement covers strategy, design, build, and post-launch care — orchestrated by a single senior team.
Barrierswehadto overcome.
A concise look at the constraints that shaped every decision in the build.
1,900+ automated axe violations
A pre-engagement scan surfaced 1,900+ automated violations across the top 120 pages, on top of an unknown volume of issues only manual testing can find.
Editor-introduced regressions
100+ editors publishing without accessibility training meant every content update risked reintroducing color contrast, alt text, and heading order failures.
AODA and WCAG 2.2 AA drift
The last third-party audit was 3 years stale, the site had shipped 4 major design updates since, and no VPAT existed to support procurement or complaint responses.
PDF and media backlog
340 program and policy PDFs were published without tags, reading order, or alt text. Video content lacked accurate captions and transcripts.
Whatwebuilt.
The pieces that shaped the final build — each tied back to a real business outcome.
Audit mapped to success criteria
Every finding tied to a specific WCAG 2.2 success criterion with severity, effort estimate, and screen-recording evidence so remediation was schedulable, not open-ended.
Component library, not one-off fixes
Rebuilt the shared Drupal component library so accessibility is baked into every template. Fix once, benefit everywhere.
CI-enforced regression
axe-core and Pa11y wired into Lighthouse CI. Any PR that regresses accessibility fails the build before it merges.
Editor enablement
8 live 90-minute training sessions plus a written playbook so editors ship accessible content without needing engineering review.
Whatchanged.
What changed for the team and their audience after launch — measured in real behavior, not vanity metrics.
- 412 unique WCAG 2.2 AA failures closed (100 percent of Level A and AA)
- Lighthouse accessibility score: 74 → 98 average across top templates
- Zero critical or serious axe violations on template code
- VPAT 2.5 delivered for WCAG 2.2 AA and AODA
- WCAG-conformant accessibility statement published
- 340 PDFs remediated and republished with tags and reading order
- 100+ editors trained; regression rate cut by 90 percent
Insidethebuild.
A few selected screens from the live product.
DoodleWebturnedaccessibilityfromarecurringfiredrillintoaprogramourteamcanactuallyrun.TheVPATalonechangedhowprocurementtalksaboutoursite.
Numbersweareproud of.
Specific, measurable, and pulled from production analytics (not assumptions).
OtherEducationwork,worth a look.
Frequently asked questions about the George Brown College project
- What did DoodleWeb build for George Brown College?
- DoodleWeb designed and built a new Drupal 10 platform for George Brown College in the Education sector. The engagement shipped in 24 weeks and launched in 2024. Scope covered Drupal 10, Acquia Cloud, Layout Builder, Paragraphs, axe-core, Pa11y, Lighthouse CI, NVDA, JAWS, VoiceOver.
- Which platform and tech stack was used for the George Brown College project?
- George Brown College was built on Drupal 10. The full stack included Drupal 10, Acquia Cloud, Layout Builder, Paragraphs, axe-core, Pa11y, Lighthouse CI, NVDA, JAWS, VoiceOver. DoodleWeb selected the stack after a short discovery based on the team's editorial workflow, performance targets, and compliance requirements for Education.
- What problem was George Brown College trying to solve?
- George Brown College is legally required to meet AODA (Ontario) and increasingly needs to align to WCAG 2.2 AA to satisfy procurement and international student expectations. Their legacy CMS produced accessibility drift with every content update: color contrast failures on branded components, missing form labels, keyboard traps in the mega menu, PDFs published without tags, and 100+ editors publishing without training. A pre-engagement axe scan flagged 1,900+ automated violations, and the last third-party audit was 3 years stale.
- How did DoodleWeb approach the George Brown College build?
- A full audit-plus-remediation program on the existing Drupal 10 platform. Week 1 to 4: template inventory and priority-page selection (top 47 templates, 120 highest-traffic pages). Week 5 to 10: manual audit against WCAG 2.2 AA and AODA using NVDA, JAWS, VoiceOver, and keyboard-only testing, plus axe-core and Pa11y automation, with every finding mapped to a success criterion and severity. Week 11 to 20: remediation in small reviewable PRs, including a rebuilt AODA-conformant component library, ARIA and focus fixes across interactive patterns, 340 PDF documents retagged, video captioning workflow, and axe and Pa11y checks wired into Lighthouse CI so regressions fail the build. Week 21 to 24: VPAT 2.5 authoring, WCAG-conformant accessibility statement, and 8 live editor training sessions.
- What were the results of the George Brown College project?
- 412 unique WCAG failures closed (100 percent of Level A and AA). Average Lighthouse accessibility score across the top 47 templates rose from 74 to 98. Zero critical or serious axe violations remaining on template code. VPAT 2.5 delivered for WCAG 2.2 AA and AODA, ready for procurement and OCR-style responses. Public accessibility statement published. 100+ editors trained. AODA compliant at scale with weekly automated regression scans in CI catching new issues within 24 hours. Reported metrics: 412 WCAG issues closed, 74 → 98 Lighthouse a11y score, 100% Level A + AA conformance, VPAT 2.5 Delivered.
- How long did the George Brown College project take?
- 24 weeks. Kickoff to launch, delivered by a single senior team (strategist, designer, engineer, and QA/accessibility lead) with no offshore handoff or junior swap after the SOW was signed.
- Is the George Brown College website live and where can I see it?
- Yes. The live site is at https://www.georgebrown.ca. It launched in 2024 and is maintained by George Brown College's in-house team, with optional SLA-backed managed support from DoodleWeb.
- Can DoodleWeb build a project like George Brown College for us?
- Yes. DoodleWeb specializes in Education builds on Drupal 10 and similar platforms. Every quote is fixed-fee, returned in 48 hours, and staffed by the same senior team that ships it. Book a free 30-minute call at https://calendly.com/doodleweb/30min or email info@doodleweb.io.