SOMERSET WINS FIRST SERVICE
Nearly 70% of the UK’s wealth generation comes from ‘the service sector’ and Somerset is no exception. Yet industry research suggests that less than 1 in 5 services are created and developed without any involvement of consumers and with no formal process! Imagine your car or iPod without some good design behind it. But that is all set to change in Somerset, and the rest of the West Country, thanks to a new initiative spearheaded by the Somerset Design Enterprise Network.
Somerset College and SDEN have won the bid to develop a ‘Service Design’ training programme for designers, service business owners and that includes the Public sector. The programme is unique in the South West and is amongst only one or two other such initiatives that are just starting to emerge throughout the whole of the UK.
Andrew Knutt, Chairman of the Somerset Design Enterprise Network, said: ‘the training programme, starting at Somerset College on the 24th September, is a real opportunity for Somerset to take the lead in such an important area for business, and by winning this bid places Somerset at the heart of a service revolution in the South West.
The increasing importance of the design sector has been highlighted more recently by UK Design Council research that shows a 30% increase in the number of firms who regard design as integral to their operation.
The Somerset Design Enterprise Network is determined to ensure the county’s design industry is in a strong position and fully ready to take advantage of an upturn in the economy when it comes along.