URLIFE.ORG.UK, By Rebecca Ross and Dionne Campbell, Central Saints Martins, Camden Council
1. HEI: Central Saint Martins College of Art & Design
Course(s)/Research body: Graphic Communication Design
Programme – Digital and Interaction subject area
Main Partners: Commissioning, Camden Council
Funders: Camden Council
Place: London Borough of Camden
Keywords: Young People, Advice services, Well-being
urlife.org.uk
Redesigning and expanding website content
more on:
urlife.org.uk/about
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situation/problem/the project addresses.
Brief: To redesign and expand content for a council website
providing information to Camden’s young people about sexual
health, mental health, and substance misuse.
3. Project response: The design sought to establish a continuity
between the familiarity and sense of ownership that Camden’s
young people have with their neighbrhood, and the availability of
services related to health and well-being issues that might be
uncomfortable to approach. We wanted to speak directly and
avoid a patronising voice.
4. Actor
Central Saint Martins
Graduate Designer: Duarte Carrilho da Graça
Tutor: Dr Rebecca Ross
Motivations for involvement (agendas):
This was a chance for Duarte to take on a larger scale
project than he might have been able to as a stand-alone
freelancer. We both were excited about working with local
government on a project that helps the community.
Contribution to the project (assets):
Duarte did the bulk of the design and technical development
work for the webiste with input and supervision from
Rebecca.
The project outcomes for this actor:
It was a productive experience for Duarte, Rebecca, and the
insitution in terms of developing experience, skills, and
relationships and doing work we could be proud of.
5. Actor:
Camden Council
Dionne Campbell, Senior Commissioning Officer
Motivations for involvement (agendas):
Camden Council wanted to expand the content for urlife.org.uk
and refresh the look and feel. They felt that in working with
Central Saint Martins they would have a trusted partner who
would still be provide a youth oriented perspective that would
come through in the design.
Contribution to the project (assets):
Camden financed the project and provided input in the web
design, including insight and feedback on the design, and the
copy for the website.
The project outcomes for this actor:
An opportunity to employ a local Central Saint Martin’s graduate
to redesign the website. A project which reflected the needs of
the council and fused these with a creative approach to produce
a website enjoyed and utilised by many Camden young
people. A design which reflected the views of local young
people and involved art students from local secondary schools
in the final design.
6. Actor:
Regents High
Art and Design A-Level students
Motivations for involvement (agendas):
Regents High is a local Sixth Form in Camden. They were interested in working on a
project at CSM as a way of finding out more about what it would be like to study here.
Contribution to the project (assets):
They were able to contribute from the perspective of the constituent audience and work
with other actors to generate content for the website (films of the local neighbourhood).
The project outcomes for this actor:
The students learnt more about CSM and were able to contribute to the design and
content of a website which being used across Camden. Two of the students plan on
applying to foundation at CSM and Rebecca has agreed to write them reference letters.
7. Design process: The design for the website involved a concept
phase, a design phase, and a testing/finishing phase. There was a
structured approval process with regular meetings and young people
involved at set points within all three phases.
8. Design methods: We ran a few workshops and informal design
activities which young people in the borough participated in. However
the bulk of the project entailed concept development through
sketching and discussion, front-end design and back-end
development (mostly in-browser), complemented by some user
testing.
9. The role of design: Through this process CSM was able to deliver a
web site design that provided content in a way that proved to be more
interactive and engaging than was imagined by the council. CSM
helped the council hone in on an effective visual tone for
communicating to young people. This was something that was
difficult to describe and define at the start of the project.
10. Project output and impact:
Web site front-end
Database and admin tools
Consulting on hosting purchase
The CSM graduate has been able
to further the development of his
freelance practice with this project
in his portfolio.
The project confirmed for us that
the council and the college
benefitted mutually from the
collaboration, to the extent that
what we did together was greater
than the sum of the parts.
11. Successes and Shortcomings
Success: The delivery of a greatly improved website which target
users enjoyed using. The key challenge for the project was the slow
pace behind the scenes in both key institutions.
Key shortcoming: Slow behind the scenes processes in both
insitutions
Key barrier: It was hard to get young people to become involved /
volunteer at the level we hoped (would have liked to work with more
young people), however we worked around this and kept moving
forwards.
Key enabler: Camden’s budget for the project was appropriate and
gave CSM and the graduate enough space to put a lot of care and
effort in. This match between ambition and funding was the key
element which enabled the project to work for all the actors involved.