This will be a co-design project led by Dr Nicky Ryan, a Programme Director in the School of Design, with post-graduate students studying MA Design Management and Cultures and MDes Service Design Innovation.
The aim of the project is for students to analyse ANS as an organisation and to research into the needs of its various stakeholders including the executive team, Sutton Council, the local arts communities and potential audiences for the arts in the borough. The students will use the Double Diamond research method (Discover, Define, Develop, Deliver) to work closely with stakeholders to produce an evaluative review and recommendations for presentation at an event to be held in the local area.
There will be 30 students involved in the project from countries across the globe including the UK, Germany, Sweden, Denmark, Italy, Greece, India, Thailand, China, Korea, Brazil, Columbia, Venezuela and the US. ANS will benefit from receiving a diversity of international perspectives on their work and the students will gain experience of working in suburbia, a very different place to the capital city and global hub of central London.
‘We are very excited about working with ANS’, said Dr Nicky Ryan. ‘The project will give students in my programme a chance to work on a real-world challenging brief - one which extends the college ethos of developing external partnerships for social engagement at the same time as enhancing students’ employability and enterprise skills. We look forward to supporting ANS in its aim of building a vibrant cultural network in Sutton and in promoting the suburbs as the next creative frontier!’