Support organisation Design Initiative closes due to a lack of funding

The organisation, which supported the design sector in the North West, had its Arts Council funding pulled last year and says it has also lost funding from a number of other sources in the past 12 months.

Design Initiative has closed its offices in Manchester and Liverpool and its four staff have been made redundant.

The organisation was founded in 1992 as Liverpool Design Initiative and in 2000 it expanded its operations to Manchester and the wider North West.

It launched the Liverpool Design Festival in 2008, during the city’s reign as European Capital of Culture, and Manchester Design Symposium, which ran in 2011 and 2012 and featured speakers including Adrian Shaughnessy and Morag Myerscough.

Roger Morris, chair of Design Initiative’s board, says, ‘During its 20 years in existence, Design Initiative has had a substantial impact on the growth and continued success of the design and contemporary craft sectors. It has enabled thousands of designers to establish, grow and sustain their businesses.’