Release checklist v1.3

[RitaMAllenCA]

(DEV) Close or defer all tickets in the epics (code complete/scope closure) - code freeze
(DEV) Create release candidate branch (branching, tagging) - Middleware and Frontend
(Business Owner) Identify destination & distribution targets (communications, announcements)
(SRE) Ensure SRE pipelines are in place
(DEV) unit & Integration tests have passed
(DEV) Create readme in git repo (scope closure)
(DEV) ensure changelog is in place
(SRE) acceptance tests in a production environment has passed
(DEV) Documentation updates are in place (docs team)