Design Studies team wins Community Engagement Award for work with vulnerable elderly communities

Our Design Studies department has been awarded the Community Impact Award by the 2025 Warwick Awards for Public and Community Engagement (WAPCE) in recognition of our ongoing commitment to advancing sustainable innovation within local communities through interdisciplinary and socially engaged design.

Our Design Studies department has been awarded the Community Impact Award by the 2025 Warwick Awards for Public and Community Engagement (WAPCE) in recognition of our ongoing commitment to advancing sustainable innovation within local communities through interdisciplinary and socially engaged design.

The WAPCE Awards were set up to pay tribute to the vital contributions Warwick staff and students make to engaging the public by sharing and co-producing knowledge, whether it be on an international, national, or local level.

Our Design Studies department was awarded the Community Impact Award for the project-based work at the heart of our Social Design module, which fosters long-term collaborations between students and communities to generate outcomes that both aid and empower these communities.

The specific project which received commendation this year was our students’ work with vulnerable elderly residents from Midland Heart housing schemes in Canley, Coventry. With support from the Warwick Institute of Engagement and Coventry City Council, students co-designed solutions to address digital exclusion in these elderly communities, creating tools that enhance their digital literacy and overall wellbeing.

The project also involved the Warwickshire Wildlife Trust, who enabled us to integrate nature-based practices into digital learning to help boost engagement and enjoyment for the intended audience. The project ran from October 2024 to March 2025, and not only demonstrated the power of co-design in building reciprocal learning experiences and meaningful community engagement but has positively reshaped perceptions of the university; positioning it as a world-leading institution that is accessible, responsive, and willing to give back to marginalised communities.

Congratulations to all our Design Studies team and students that made this award success possible! You can find out more about the WAPCE awards and explore the other award winners for 2025 here.