The All-Party Parliamentary Design and Innovation Group (APDIG) is an official

All-Party Parliamentary Group An all-party parliamentary group (APPG) is a grouping in the Parliament of the United Kingdom that is composed of members of parliament from all political parties, but have no official status within Parliament. Description and functions All-party ...

. The group exists to provide a forum for open debate between Parliament and the UK's design and innovation communities, and to communicate within Parliament the enormous potential value of design, innovation and the UK creative industries, as well as help the design community better engage with the policy process. The APPG is composed of over 30 MPs and Peers from across the

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...

Liberal Democrat Several political party, political parties from around the world have been called the Liberal Democratic Party or Liberal Democrats. These parties usually follow a liberal democracy, liberal democratic ideology. Active parties Former parties ...

and

Labour Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the labour ...

and more parties. Its official entry on the Houses of Parliament register can be found on th
APPG Register
Its secretariat services are provided by

Policy Connect Policy Connect is an independent, cross-party not-for-profit organization with two decades in policy work, overseeing the research and delivery of more than 50 key publications. The think tank has a history of running forums, commissions and All ...

, an independent, not-for-profit organisation based in London.

Mission

The APDIG exists to advise government and promote debate around UK design policy, acting as a bridge between the Westminster and design communities. In supporting and promoting effective debate around design and innovation, the APDIG seeks to address three particular elements within UK design policy: * Specific government policy measures that directly affect the design industry * Government's wider approach to industrial policy and the use of the design industry as a tool for industrial competitiveness * How government employs design services to improve its own operation and working

Events

The APDIG holds regular seminar events within Parliament to allow policy makers and the design community to meet and share ideas. Recent events have addressed issues such as the effect of design thinking on the policy making process, government procurement of design services, recent government changes to the school curriculum and its impact on design education, amendments to copyright legislation that affect designers, and the potential for an EU-wide design policy. The APDIG also regularly holds events outside Parliament, typically in collaboration with other leading design industry organisations. Recent partnerships have included events at the V&A,

Young Foundation The Young Foundation is a non-profit, non-governmental think tank based in London that specialises in social innovation to tackle structural inequality. It is named after Michael Young, the British sociologist and social activist who created o ...

, Danish Embassy and the London 2012 Olympic Park.

The Design Commission

The APDIG has a bespoke research arm, the Design Commission. Made up of more than 20 leading figures from across the UK creative and economic communities, its purpose is to explore, through research, how design can drive economic and social improvement, and how government and business can better understand the importance of design. The Commission holds regular research inquiries, similar in scope and approach to that of a UK Parliament

select committee Select committee may refer to: *Select committee (parliamentary system), a committee made up of a small number of parliamentary members appointed to deal with particular areas or issues *Select or special committee (United States Congress) *Select ...

inquiry process. An example of work undertaken by the Commission: in 2011 the Commission launched a six-month inquiry, chaired by

Baroness Whitaker Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than a lord or knig ...

and

Vicky Pryce Vasiliki "Vicky" Pryce (' Kourmouzi ( el, Βασιλική Κουρμούζη); born 15 July 1952) is a Greek-born British economist and a former Joint Head of the United Kingdom's Government Economic Service. She is currently the Chief Econom ...

, former Joint Head of the United Kingdom's

Government Economic Service The Government Economic Service (GES) is a professional grouping of public sector economists who work across some 40 departments and agencies of His Majesty's Government (HMG). The GES Board is chaired by the Head of the GES and consists of gover ...

. The inquiry examined the UK's design education system, and produced a report, entitled 'Restarting Britain', calling for policy changes in UK education.

Parliamentary Members

The All-Party Parliamentary Design and Innovation Group is made up of over 30 parliamentarians from across both Houses of Parliament and three political parties, as well as the House of Lords' cross benches.

Associate Members

As an Associate Parliamentary Group, membership of the APDIG is open to individuals and organisations from outside Parliament. The APDIG currently has ten associate members, comprising several of the leading organisations from across the UK creative and design industries: *

Design Council The Design Council, formerly the Council of Industrial Design, is a United Kingdom charity incorporated by Royal Charter. Its stated mission is "to champion great design that improves lives and makes things better". It was instrumental in the prom ...

* Design Business Association *

Crafts Council The Crafts Council is the national development agency for contemporary craft in the United Kingdom, and is funded by Arts Council England. History The Crafts Advisory Committee was formed in 1971 to advise the Minister for the Arts, David Eccles ...

* Design & Technology Association *

Creative & Cultural Skills Creative & Cultural Skills is one of the Sector Skills Councils established by the UK Government in 2005 to foster the development of a skilled workforce. Function It covers crafts, cultural heritage, jewelry, design, music, performing, literary ...

* Council for Higher Education in Art and Design (CHEAD) *

British Institute of Interior Design The British Institute of Interior Design (BIID) is a professional organisation for commercial and residential interior designers in Britain. The current president of the institute is Lester Bennett. Establishment Founded in 1965 as the Interior De ...

Design Museum The Design Museum in Kensington, London exhibits product, industrial, graphic, fashion, and architectural design. In 2018, the museum won the European Museum of the Year Award. The museum operates as a registered charity, and all funds generat ...

* The Human Centered Design Society * Images&Co Design Group

References

{{Reflist, refs= About us
{{webarchive , url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120928114909/http://www.policyconnect.org.uk/apdig/about-us , date=September 28, 2012 from the official web page. Code of Governance
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External links

Associate Parliamentary Design and Innovation Group website
All-Party Parliamentary Groups