Hackney Forest School

For many children, living in an urban area denies them easy access to the thrill of the outdoors. Hackney Council were acutely aware of this and set-up an exciting initiative called Forest School. With such a great scheme in place, Spy were tasked with generating a brand to increase awareness and uptake for children and adults across the borough.

How can you create such a brand without understanding the experience first hand? You’ve got to get involved, so we spent time on Hackney Marshes taking part in loads of fun and engaging activities with children, families and teachers. We’d highly recommend it.

Rolled into that time we ran some activities of our own, asking everyone to draw and describe what they could find, discover and feel at Forest School. These conversations clearly inspired and influenced the design work.

The creatures and excitement of what can be found in the undergrowth fuel the informal brand language. Implementation involved a variety of print processes and applications including: posters, work packs, apparel, ads, bags, stamps, cards, badges and guidelines.

The brand has contributed heavily to the team’s ability to promote the school, so much so that it is consistently oversubscribed. The children continue to love the creatures, continually giving them names of their own!