The National Centre for Social Research (NatCen) are Britain’s largest independent social research company, and my role as their sole designer was to ensure that their research was marketed and promoted in such a way to make it both accessible and compelling for all. I was responsible for producing both digital and print outputs which ranged from the typesetting of reports, posters and survey participant documentation, infographics, and social media banners. As part of my role I was encouraged to do my own research and use my abilities as a visual storyteller to choose what stories I wanted to tell, and how I went about telling them.
My designs have been sent to over 100,000 survey participants, were featured at events held in both Parliament and Twitter’s London headquarters, and been part of reports that have been downloaded over 10,000 times and referenced in speeches by Prime Minster David Cameron and Sir John Curtice.
BCS70
The British Cohort Survey was a fascinating survey that documented the lives of a cohort of people who were born in 1970, and included details each year on their health, activities and lifestyle, to give an amazing insight into the impact of life choices. BCS70 had its own sub-brand within the NatCen brand guidelines, so I had a lot of creative freedom in producing all the marketing collateral around the survey including leaflets, letters and summary documents. The full survey guide can be viewed here.
Infographics
During my time with NatCen I pushed for the inclusion of infographics and championed their use in reports and survey results whenever possible, and as a result they became an increasingly popular request. I’ve always enjoyed creating infographics, so the opportunity to promote such fascinating data in a visual way was one of the most enjoyable aspects of my role. Full size versions of these infographics can be viewed here: DCLG Social Rented Sector overview , Employment in the construction Industry, EHS Housing Event poster.
Survey collateral
Encouraging members of the public to give up their free time to take part in a survey is a difficult job, so the content and design of NatCen’s survey collateral was important! I regularly designed respondent letters, long-format questionnaires, vouchers, and leaflets. Both the survey letter and NatCen Panel leaflet can be viewed on these links.
Reports
Periodically the surveys would release reports of their findings, so I worked on both the report typesetting, charts and summary infographics. Often content was repurposed for social media, which I led on. The full reports can be viewed here: WUKT EU Briefing paper, and Food Standards Agency Food Hygiene Report.
Social media
The best survey findings were often shared on social media, which was a section of the role I pushed to expand during my time with NatCen. My belief in the importance of promoting data in visual ways drove me to be more creative when representing survey findings, to ensure the social media posts were shared as widely as possible. While the surveys themselves remained formal and corporate, I was allowed more freedom to explore topics that I thought were interesting and attention-grabbing for the social media posts, which I enjoyed immensely!
Emma Bowey 
