There are 6,500 in-house teams1 in the UK, 10% more than in 2005. The number of designers working in in-house design teams has increased by 8% since 2005.
However, the total budget reported by in-house design teams has decreased by 34%, and few in-house design teams expect their budgets to increase in the coming year. Overall though, in-house design teams appear to have weathered the recession quite well. This may be because many are well established, having been in operation for 15 years or more. More than three quarters of in-house design teams work in communications design and just over a third are based in public sector organisations.
Download a PDF factsheet full of facts and stats on in-house design teams in the UK
Number of in-house design teams and in-house designers in the UK
How many in-house design teams are there in the UK?
There are 6,500 in-house design teams in the UK (in businesses with 100 plus employees). This is a 10% increase since 2005.
How many designers work in in-house design teams in the UK?
There are 83,6002 designers working in in-house design teams in the UK. This is an 8% increase on 2005.
Profile of in-house design teams in the UK
What disciplines do in-house design teams work in?
Four fifths of in-house teams work in communications design, an increase of almost 20% since 2005.
How big are in-house design teams?
Just under two thirds of in-house design teams employ fewer than five designers.
How long have UK in-house design teams been operating?
UK in-house teams are well established; more than half have been operating for 15 years or more.
How big are the businesses3 that in-house teams are based in?
In-house design teams can be found in businesses of varied sizes.
How many of the businesses that have in-house teams are in the public, private and third sector?
A third of in-house design teams work in the public sector. Very few third sector businesses have in-house design teams.
Where do in-house design teams sit within a business?
Half of in-house design teams are based within another department, most commonly marketing or communications.
What percentage of in-house design teams undertake work for external clients on a commercial basis?
One in five in-house design teams report undertaking commercial work for clients outside their own business.
Why do businesses have in-house design teams?
The most common reason for businesses to have in-house design teams is to ensure cost effectiveness. This has become more important for businesses over the last five years.
What industry sectors are in-house design teams part of?
In-house design teams are most commonly based in public sector organisations and manufacturing businesses.
Financial position of in-house design teams
What is the value of the collective budgets of UK in-house design teams?
UK in-house design teams’ budgets have a total value of £3.8bn – this is a decrease of approximately 34% (adjusted for inflation) since 2005.
How did UK in-house design teams’ budgets for last year compare with the year before?
Just over a third of in-house design teams saw no change in their budget over the last financial year.
How do UK in-house design teams expect their budgets to change next year?
More than 40% of in-house design teams do not expect their budgets to change significantly in the coming year.
Job market for in-house design teams
What percentage of in-house design teams recruited staff last year?
31% of in-house design teams recruited at least one designer last year. This is in line with recruitment levels for design consultancies (also 31%) but 20% down on 2005 figures when 51% of in-house design teams had recruited over the previous year.
What percentage of in-house design teams made redundancies last year?
9% of UK in-house design teams made redundancies last year compared to 7% of all design businesses.