Doing good with... Derwen College

We design brands that make the difference for the ones doing generational good. We partnered with Derwen College to capture the essence of their unique style of education and independence, into an exciting new brand identity. It’s ambitious, courageous, collaborative and pioneering, everything that they are.

Here, we talk to Principal and CEO of the college, Meryl Green about the college and why she felt a new branding identity was needed.

Tell us about the college and what you do.

Derwen College is an award-winning FE provider for young adults with special educational needs and disabilities. We are also a 93 year old charity that is close to the hearts of our many stakeholder groups including our students, clients, governors, staff, parents, carers and the local community.

Why the new identity?

We felt that it was time for a branding refresh. We wanted to do something new and exciting and bringing our stakeholders with us on that journey was critically important to the overall success of the project. We began working with GoodThing in September and from day one we knew that we had chosen the right company to take us forward onto the next stage of our evolution.

Was it and is it still important to you to have a collaborative approach to getting your brand values into your communications?

Yes! The team invested a lot of time in the early stages of the process meeting with different groups – they worked with us collaboratively to explore our perceptions about ourselves and our place in the sector and the local community.

We were particularly impressed with the time they took to listen to and understand how our learners feel about their college through a hands-on creative session developed just for them.

What do you feel the company achieved?

Ultimately, we now have a completely new branding concept that we all love. They have managed to capture the essence of Derwen College and reflect it back to us in a way we never could have imagined without their input and I have no hesitation in recommending them.

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