Re-envisioned from the new brand to the new digital platform
Since 1975, PLASP has been a trusted provider of affordable, high-quality childcare, supporting more than 11,000 children and families each year across Peel Region and Toronto. As a charitable, not-for-profit organization, PLASP operates over 35 Early Learning and Child Care Centres, more than 230 before- and after-school programs for kindergarten and school-age children, and six EarlyON Centres offering free programs for caregivers and children up to age six.
Project Summary
PLASP came to Inorbital with an outdated brand and an underperforming website that no longer met the needs of parents or administrators. The existing site suffered from a confusing information structure, inefficient search tools, and a rigid proprietary CMS, resulting in frequent phone inquiries and frustration for families trying to find program information.
Inorbital was selected to lead a full redesign and rebuild of the PLASP website on WordPress, with a focus on brand revitalization, usability, and long-term manageability.
Goals
Brand Revitalization: Create a modern, cohesive brand experience that resonates with both parents and children whilemaintainingprofessionalism and trust.
Improved Information Architecture: Reimagine the site structure to make it easier for families to find the information they need.
Search for Care Experience: Design and develop a custom, API-driven search experience that simplifies how parents find programs.
Ease of Management: Build a flexible, scalable CMS that empowers PLASP’s internal team to manage content efficiently.
Scope of Work
Challenges
PLASP’s previous website was built on a proprietary CMS with rigid page layouts and limited flexibility. Information was frequently duplicated, difficult to update, and inconsistent across pages.
Parents struggled to find program information due to overlapping categories and unclear naming conventions, many of which needed to align with specific school boards or municipalities. The site’s cluttered design, poor mobile responsiveness, and confusing navigation further compounded these issues, driving users to call PLASP directly for clarification.
Our Approach
Brand Revitalization
While PLASP had recently introduced a new logo, the broader brand had not evolved to match modern digital expectations. We expanded on the new identity, transforming the website from stale and dated to fresh, welcoming, and kid-friendly without sacrificing credibility.
To reflect the playfulness of the bouncing ball logo, we introduced Lottie animations that respond to scroll behaviour, along with subtle micro-interactions throughout the site. These elements add warmth and personality while keeping the experience intuitive and accessible.
Information Architecture
We redesigned the sitemap to clearly separate core content areas, reducing clutter and improving wayfinding. The guiding principle was simplicity: help users find what they need as quickly and effortlessly as possible.
Several content areas required custom solutions. Fee-related pages needed to be organized by region and age group, supported by dedicated side navigation systems. The parent handbook required its own search and menu experience, nested seamlessly within the broader site navigation.
Additionally, program and location searches needed URL-based results to support internal linking and navigation. These structural decisions eliminated redundancy, reduced confusion, and resolved many of the usability issues present on the previous site.
Custom API Integration
We integrated PLASP’s backend systems directly into the website, syncing data daily through their API to ensure accuracy across program details, locations, and fee information. Dynamic templates pull real-time data, eliminating manual updates and reducing the risk of outdated or inconsistent content.
This approach significantly improved accuracy while minimizing administrative overhead.
Search for Care Experience
One of the most significant pain points for parents was finding the right program. Program categories overlapped, terminology varied by municipality and school board, and users often needed insider knowledge to navigate the system.
To solve this, we worked closely with PLASP to restructure their data and designed a filterable, searchable map experience. Parents can now find programs based on practical criteria without needing to understand board-specific terminology. This removed friction, reduced overwhelm, and dramatically improved the overall search experience.
Built for Flexibility and Scale
Ease of management was embedded into every aspect of the build. We developed flexible layouts and drag-and-drop widgets that allow content editors to customize layout, colour schemes, and presentation without developer support.
The “Search for Care” results (nearly 1,000 pages) are dynamically populated from PLASP’s API but stored as custom post types. This allows staff to enrich individual results with content such as slideshows and videos, while core data like fees, availability, and contact information remains automatically updated.
The result is a system that prioritizes content creation over manual data management, ensuring consistency and accuracy across the site.
Results
The new PLASP website has been widely praised as a breath of fresh air. The revitalized brand and redesigned user experience deliver a modern, mobile-friendly platform that is both engaging and easy to navigate.
Parents can now find program information without confusion, outdated content, or unnecessary phone calls. Internally, PLASP benefits from a flexible, scalable system that supports their operations today and into the future.
