Design Council wins four-year contract with European Commission

Over the next four years, Design Council will support the European Commission to deliver a design-led approach to policy formulation and implementation, after being awarded a significant new contract.   

The contract enables Design Council to help policymakers meet the challenge of doing more with less, while at the same time meeting greater expectations of what the state can deliver. Governments around the world have increasingly been looking at how design can enable them to systemise innovation more effectively. Over the last five years, Design Council’s work has largely focused on approaches that help them to achieve this, building new capabilities in policy professionals and strengthening how public policies are developed and implemented.

In autumn 2015, the European Commission put out a call in response to the growing need for design capabilities and tools for policy formulation and implementation.

Design Council won the call by proposing its extensive experience in promoting a challenge and solution-focused methodology delivered by specialists in strategic design. For more than a decade this process has helped thousands of organisations in the public, private and third sector address and solve challenges across a wide range of social and economic issues.

Ellie Runcie, Director of Future Programmes at Design Council said: "Design Council is perfectly placed to support the European Commission in the application of a design-led approach to policy formulation and implementation. We have been pioneering the use of strategic design to drive innovation in the public sector for more than a decade. In that time, we’ve delivered more than 100 interventions, from local authority to central government level. We’re particularly excited to support the European Commission to apply strategic design approaches to tackle policy challenges at a pan-European level."

Initial meetings begin in February. For further information, contact Ellie on ellie.runcie@designcouncil.org.uk