What skills do designers need and how do they get them?

How can we help designers get the right skills?

Addressing: Supporting growth in the creative economy

Lesley Morris

Lesley Morris

Head of Design Skills, Design Council

What's the issue here?

UK design – and UK designers – are highly valued around the world. But do we have the right skills to to help the economy stay competitive into the future?

After all, competition is intensifying as emerging economies are focusing fresh attention on developing creative capabilities to match their low-cost manufacturing.

In addition, rapid social and economic change is likely to put designers under increased pressure. As an industry, design can’t afford to rest on its laurels.

What we are doing

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See some excerpts from the parliamentary preview of the design industry skills development plan. Read the video transcript


The Design Council is addressing this issue. We’re working with Creative and Cultural Skills – the sector skills council for the creative industries. Together, we’ve set up the Design Skills Advisory Panel, an expert group of design employers and educators.

They have spoken to more than 4,000 designers, design managers, teachers, students and stakeholders who have been involved in workshops, focus groups and interviews, providing honest and insightful feedback. We've now analysed the findings and put all the recommendations together in High-level skills for higher value, the new design industry skills development plan.

 

In more depth

How you can benefit

The Design Blueprint is the implementation plan to support the development of a highly skilled and more prosperous design sector. High-level skills for higher value identified skills gaps, and the Blueprint sets out a clear roadmap for bridging these gaps. A comprehensive programme of strategic products and services for design professionals, includes:

  • Designers’ Business Knowledge Base – a guide to what professional practice really means for design businesses
  • Professional development campaign – a drive to boost availability and take-up of professional development, promoting new and existing courses.
  • Strategic analysis and future thinking – researching the skills we’ll need tomorrow, analysing the findings and leading debate on future opportunities and challenges for designers.

 

It will also work with partners to deliver programmes for design education, including:

  • A network of Visiting Design Professionals – which will bring working designers into degree courses to connect the curriculum with practice
  • A Multi-disciplinary Design Network – to bring together those in design, business, technology and other fields to share practical knowledge and experience
  • Careers advice and guidance – clear and comprehensive information for students to help them choose the right course, and the right direction / job afterwards.
  • Designers working with schools – enabling teachers and students to work with professional designers
  • A 'Design Mark' scheme – to reward schools for delivering high quality design education

 

In more depth
Download a PDF copy of Design Blueprint (3MB) to read the full plans and find out how you could benefit

We still want to hear your views. You can add your comments – and read others’ views – on our Perspectives page.

How the consultation is progressing

18 March 2007

Design Blueprint front cover
The who, what, when and how of implementing the proposals set out in High-level skills for higher value are set out in Design Blueprint. Download your PDF copy (3MB)

May 2007

High-level skills for higher value (the Design Industry Skills Development Plan is published and also available to download from www.ukdesignskills.com

April 2007

We held a preview of the Design Industry Skills Development Plan in parliament

October 2006

We consulted over 4000 people from across the design industry with more than 1000 designers, design managers, teachers, students and stakeholders involved in workshops, focus groups and interviews

May 2006

We launched Keep British Design Alive, a campaign to encourage everyone in the design industry to comment on the Design Skills Advisory Panel's set of ideas for building a better design industry

We're working with

link to Creative and Cultural Skills site
Creative and Cultural Skills, the sector skills council for the creative industries 

YOUR PERSPECTIVES ON THIS ISSUE

Jonathan Sands, Design Skills Advisory Panel

Jonathan Sands

Chairman of the Design Skills Advisory Panel

 

Quote: This plan is a powerful and realistic strategy for improving our world-leading, globally celebrated design industry. To stay in that position, we need to support and roll out this Blueprint to ensure we have the skills to compete in the face of international competition and other countries' heavy investment in skills and education.
Leni Schwendinger

Leni Schwendinger

Designer and founder of Light Projects Ltd

 

Quote: Focus and development is needed on multi- and interdisciplinary and collaborative approaches. The ability to communicate in words and pictures to apply ideas across boundaries and synthesise design concepts has not been formalised. And yet, the architecture / environmental design industry is moving that way.
Prof Maureen Wayman

Prof. Maureen Wayman

Vice Chancellor and Dean of Faculty, Art and Design at Manchester Metropolitan University

 

Quote: Much has happened in recent years to transform art and design education but much more remains to be done. We are now poised on the edge of what could be unprecedented change. Art and design is about to have a seminal moment that will create a future to benefit education, the creative industries and the economy. It is vital that we work collaboratively, in a mutually beneficial partnership with representatives from out related industries.

Recent submissions

Bill Rammell MP, Minister for further education said on 18/03/08
Design is vital for innovation in our manufacturing industries and in our services sectors. This blueprint sets out an exciting challenge for design education and businesses and its genesis is a model for how demand-led skills development should be approached by industry and government together. I commend the Design Council and Creative & Cultural Skills for supporting this work, with industry in the driving seat.
 

Jeremy Haines said on 10/09/07 at 13.42 

If the design industry is the fastest growing sector in industry why is it felt the government intervention will help?  Is this initiative not driven by government desire to develop skills rather than a client or customer driven requirement. Will introducing acreditation foster entrepreneurism or hinder it?

Mike Bradshaw, Dean of Graphic Design LCC UAL, said on 23/7/07 at 11.58

I have read the Higher Skills for Higher Value document  - at last a report that talks with an honest understanding about design and gets to grips with real issues that can shape the future of the subject in relation to its importance within the UK and linked to Global economy. There have been so many papers in the recent past that have referred to the importance of 'design' without any explanatory context ie more about the 'cool' associations to the word and 'spin' rather than a real understanding of the importance of what the subject is about.

David Ardley said on 17/7/07 at 18.41

To be honest I am disappointed by the way the UK education sector has 'embraced' CAD/CAM and 'computer' based technology at the (apparent) expense of the pencil sketch and hands on manufacturing skills. Key foundation stones and 'designing' skills are being lost and this is wrong. Appropriate action by schools, tertiary education and professional bodies (such as the Design Museum and Design Council) must happen NOW if we are going to avoid truck loads of supposed 'designers' hitting society without having the ability or basic skills to 'design'.

S Paxford said on 17/7/07 at 16.28

I feel design education should have a holistic feel although delivering single discipline. This would allow students to gain transferable skills thus allowing them to be adaptable within the work place. This may be accomplished through conceptually biased briefs that utilise professional industry standard production techniques.

Sarah Moriarty said on 03/07/07 at 13:43

I am a lecturer in Product Design at Liverpool John Moores University and have been following with great interest the recommendations for HE in your 'High Level Skills for Higher value' report. I have also recently read about the CSD Course Recognition Programme and was wondering whether there will be any partnering of the two ventures as there are obvious cross-overs, particularly with the promotion/design of multidisciplinary programmes. Are there any plans to develop regional teams to support the HE change agenda?   

Aviv Katz, Campaign Manager, replied on 05/07/2007 at 15:51

Thank you for your comment. As you rightly point out, there are existing programmes and activities out there that address many of the recommendations, albeit in a limited capacity - some are run by professional bodies, some by educational institutions and some by private companies. We will work with as many of these as possible to avoid duplication and strengthen existing initiatives. At present we are working with a steering group that is working on the college & university set of recommendations, with representatives from different regions and nations. As plans develop it is possible that we will decide to focus on particular regions / nations, which will be reflected in the steering group’s representation.

Paula Thornton said on 26/06/2007 at 23:23

The report has a valid description of design and then the supporting evidences limit the 'realm' of design (e.g. predominantly visual/physical). Maybe you need to start with the problem statement first... For me, the reverse is true...wanting to engage in business programs that need design thinking focus, but no design courses are included.

Caroline Norman said on 25/06/2007 at 17:57

David Worthington says we don't have university courses that take on board project management, account management, research, semiotics, consumer behaviour, finance, etc.  I would like David to find out more about the MA Design Management at UCE Birmingham. The course explores the strategic role of design whilst collaborating with companies and organisations involved in design. We work with designers wanting to develop their business skills, and non-designers involved in design. Students are able to study full time or part time whilst remaining in design practice. Isn't this what is needed?

Stephen Yates said on 24/06/2007 at 08:35

At the end of a career of 30 years in teaching art, and design technology, I feel that there needs to be secondment opportunitites for young newly qualified teachers to go into industry.  Also teachers like me need constant redirection to keep pace with an ever-changing need for skills to be different. How about businesses having to adopt a school or teacher to recieve a reduction in tax or VAT! It has to be a two way process.

Marcela Leon, Designer and Associate Professor at the Art Institute of Tampa said on 20/06/2007 at 18.02

Designers acquire through training have the ability to absorb information, organise it and decide what goes where. Organisations that use the most of their resources and increase communication increase their chances of playing in 'blue oceans'; the oceans of innovation. If designers were to become the centre wheel of the project development process, they would infuse creativity and innovation into the process and thus into the organisation. This process needs to start at the school level.

Gjoko Muratovski said on 20/06/2007 at 12.32

With the lack of business skills or understanding of basic social anthropology, it is not surprising why many designers act as artists, rather than designers, forgetting that the focus of design is not self-expression or an expression of personal issues. To be a professional designer means to solve business and societal problems by providing expert advice and strategic services to clients and helping them to succeed in a competitive environment.

Ned Hoste said on 04/06/2007 at 14:35

I first participated in Designers into Schools 3 years ago - I am about to go back and run the workshop for a fourth year. I thoroughly enjoy the experience and would value the opportunity to do more working with this scheme. I think that the real world sensibilities that a practising designer can give to students in schools is invaluable and must be part of a structured development of design education in the UK if we are to grow our creative reputation and economy.

Carla Boulton said on 01/06/07 at 08:46

I would welcome a way that as an experienced and busy designer I could apply through a funded national scheme to broaden my own skills. It is nearly impossible to be able to afford to take part in creative personal development whilst also generating sufficient income to support my family.

Stuart Clitherow said on 31/05/07 at 10:32

I agree with your proposals and I would be happy to help implement the changes - if I could.
1) Schools need to review work experience, it is not a genuine experience and needs to be reviewed
2) Teachers and lecturers - too many of them have been entrenched in academic life and have lost touch with developments in the design industry - and are by default a little bit cynical on certain issues
3) Students, particularly at school - do not have access to relevant hardware and software.

Alistair Williamson said on 30/05/07 at 22:49

The Uni sector is unresponsive to the design industry. Unis set up design consultancies, and innovation centres, use so-called Knowledge Transfer Partnerships to compete with commercial businesses. Northwest Product Design Group has attempted dialog and met a brick wall. None of our companies take placements / employ graduates from competing Unis - they don't care!
Unis are not focussed on graduate design employment - over supplying to the extent that its a lost cause. All they care about is income. The Design Council's message re competitiveness is missed by Unis who focus on more / cheaper.

Jack Ruscoe said on 30/05/07 at 12:16

Too much emphasis is placed on generation of new ideas and products that do little to benefit the society and world we live in. Students need exposure to the issues that face the world and need to work with innovative people and tools that help solve these problems. We shouldn't be launching more designers into the marketplace, but more creative individuals  who are prepared enough - and angry enough to do something about poverty, poorly designed public services and housing, unsafe public transport, etc. Fewer 'design leaders' , more capable and aware problem solvers, the rest will follow.

Andy Bird said on 24/05/2007 at 22:58

I fully support the plan that hopefully ensures schools play an active role in the development of design. We must overcome the 'traditional' mind set that Design and Technology is all about making and implement quality, meaningful support for the staff that teach the subject, most being from a background of either handicrafts or woodwork/metalwork. Only then will we see our creative children flourish and achieve the 'thing' outside the box.

Mike Elam of Hyphen Design said on 13/03/2007 at 19:48

My feeling is that Industrial / Product Design should be a similar length of course to Architecture, with the professional accreditation that goes with it. This would reduce the number of graduates that are being churned out, year-on-year, and make them more employable. It would also help re-affirm the strength of British Design, worldwide; and communicate to UK industries the importance and value of design in growing their businesses.