Inspiring new ways to do business

Insight: sharing the latest design-led thinking

We engage business decision-makers, policy-makers, educators, designers and architects in the latest thinking on design and innovation so they’ll be empowered to make smart decisions that will benefit our communities and businesses.

 

Design and Innovation for Growth

Design for Innovation front coverTo coincide with the Government’s Innovation and Research Strategy for Growth we've published our own set of facts, figures and practical plans for growth. Download the PDF and watch films about design for growth in manufacturing, the built environment and public services.

Campaigns we support

Future skills for UK creative industries

As part of the Creative Industries Council, we asked Skillset to convene a Skillset Skills Group and work with DCMS, BIS and the Creative Industries Council to examine the skills issues facing the UK's creative industries. Find out more about it

Protecting Intellectual Property in design

The Government has launched a call for evidence on how the UK intellectual property system can better support our globally successful design industry. Find out more about this issue and how you can contribute to the consultation

STEM + Design

As the UK government reviews the national curriculum and design technology’s status as a compulsory school subject, the Design & Technology Association, the James Dyson Foundation and industrial designers Seymourpowell have started a campaign to secure the future of design and technology education. The Design Council is supporting the campaign. Find out more about it

Ongoing policy and research

Tom Dixon's glassesWe're making sure design is influencing government policy, and we all know that government policy is affecting design. In this section we explain how our knowledge and experience in design-led innovation is helping to shape latest government policies, from the Budget to Big Society, and how these are affecting the design industry.

Design in public services

What does the Big Society agenda mean for public services? We ran a major seminar series with the Institute for Government and Nesta to ask what innovative techniques could help deliver the Big Society vision.

Research on design industry and design use

Design Industry Research 2010

Our latest research presents a comprehensive picture of the UK design industry and of how UK businesses use design.

Should government have a design strategy?

The 2011 Design Forum asked, should government have a design strategy? The first Design Council forums brought together policymakers, designers and business leaders to consider whether now would be a good time to develop a UK Design Strategy. Browse through coverage of the debate

Design Summit for Growth

Design Summit logo

The 2011 Design Summit explored how Britain’s design industry can play a more central role in driving economic growth. You can watch videos of the presentations, browse through a recap of the online debate and keep talking about the issues raised.

Find out how the 2011 Summit ties in to Design Council vision and plans for the year ahead

Redesigning Business Summit

Cognitive Media scribing at the Big Rethink Conference

When the old ideas stop working, business must find new ones. We brought together an international audience of business leaders at our Big Rethink conference with The Economist in March 2010.

Public Services by Design

 

10 match-funded places available to ambitious public sector organisations.

Apply now

David Cameron speaking at Davos 2011

Our biggest ambitions have got to be for innovation. I don't believe for one moment we need to be downbeat about this in Europe. It was British scientists who unravelled the genome, who helped design the iPod, who invented the world wide web. Where is the world's capital for high quality industrial design? Not the US, not Asia - Europe. We've got the raw material of good ideas - let's get better at exploiting them

The Design Council offers support programmes for businesses and innovators