Reports & Resources
Explore our work from previous projects.
Search our extensive back catalogue to learn more about what works in design, including emerging trends and practice, as well as policy position papers about how to increase its use.
Design methods for developing services
17 March 2015
This is a brief introduction to why design methods can be useful when developing services. Service design is all about making services usable, easy and desirable. To design a great service, it's important to have service users in...
Keeping Connected
17 March 2015
Keeping Connected was a national design challenge that asked students to develop service design ideas to help older adults better connect to younger generations, their communities, families and each other. A partnership between...
Beyond 2012
13 March 2015
Beyond 2012 was a website that gathers behind-the-scenes stories from designers who helped shape the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. In 2005 when London was announced as the host city of the Olympics, the organisers had...
Design Out Crime: Business
5 March 2015
This guide collects evidence and insights towards a better understanding of business-related crime, particularly in relation to small-to-medium enterprises (SMEs). The aim is to help designers, manufacturers and policy makers...
Design Out Shoplifting
5 March 2015
Design Out Shoplifting was a student challenge to generate anti-shoplifting designs. Central Saint Martins and the Royal Society of Arts both ran student challenges. This brochure presents the RSA winners as well as a few of the...
Design Out Crime: Schools
5 March 2015
This guide stems from the Schools Project, which explored young people's crime concerns and how they might be resolved through design. The project gave youth a voice, established communication routes with policy makers and...
Design Out Crime: Case Studies
5 March 2015
Designers all over the world are finding ingenious ways to address crime problems. The examples described here show just how diverse this field of activity can be, with highly effective solutions coming from product, communication...
Designing Out Crime: A Designers' Guide
5 March 2015
This resource has been created to help creative professionals understand more about how design can be used to combat crime. It is a practical guide about how the design of products, services and communications can help prevent...
The Schools Project
2 March 2015
The Schools Project was set up to gather information from young people about their experiences of crime and bullying, in school and in their communities. It was part of Design Out Crime, a 2008–10 initiative from the Home Office’s...
Design Out Shoplifting Student Challenge
27 February 2015
Design Out Shoplifting was a student challenge with Central Saint Martins and the Royal Society of Arts to generate anti-shoplifting designs. It was part of Design Out Crime, a 2008–10 initiative from the Home Office’s Design and...
Innovation by design
24 February 2015
In 2014 Design Council commissioned Innovation by Design, an evaluation report from Technopolis Group on the role of design in the commercialisation of science and technology research. Download the research findings, which...
Independence Matters
18 February 2015
Launched in May 2012, Independence Matters was a Design Challenge run in partnership with Innovate UK (formerly Technology Strategy Board) to develop services that promote independence in later life. Through the programme we've...