Back to Blog

    Case Study: Silverstripe to WordPress Migration

    By We Are Chain• September 3, 2025

    Client: University of York – Department of History of Art Collaborations
    Website: yahcs.york.ac.uk

    The Challenge

    The Department of Art at the University of York approached us with a big task on a very short timescale: migrate their existing Silverstripe website to WordPress in just one month. Their key priority was to make the website easier for staff to manage day-to-day, without losing the established look and feel that staff, students, and visitors were already used to.

    Our Approach

    We carried out a complete rebuild of the site on WordPress. This allowed us to design a structure that was intuitive for staff while staying true to the existing style and branding.

    Collaboration was at the heart of the project. The team at York were fantastic to work with, offering constructive feedback throughout. We responded quickly to their requests, making sure the site evolved in line with their needs without delaying progress.

    Key steps included:

    • Rebuilding the website from scratch in WordPress.
    • Preserving the design identity within the limits of the new platform.
    • Focusing on ease of management for staff users.
    • Delivering the project against a one-month deadline.

    The Outcome

    We were thrilled to hand over the finished site ahead of schedule to the delight (and slight disbelief!) of the department. We imporved bits and pieces throughout the site, including the Search function and general navigation around the hundreds of articles and posts.

    The result is a website that maintains the familiar design and user experience, but is far simpler for staff to update and manage moving forward. We’ve ensured the department now has a solid digital foundation that will serve them well into the future, and we’re on hand to support them as their needs evolve.

    This project was a genuine pleasure to deliver. Working with the York Art History team showed what’s possible when deadlines are tight but collaboration is strong. We’re proud to have played a part in helping such an esteemed department manage its digital presence with greater ease. If you are currently on the SIlverstripe platform and want to move to something better and easier to manage, get in touch with us here at We are Chain.