Spencer du Bois records job win

Spencer du Bois has been appointed to create a logo and identity system for the National Archives, a new Government body formed from the merger of the Public Record Office and the Historical Manuscripts Commission, which is due to launch on 2 April.

Bringing together the PRO’s collection of 950 years worth of Government documents with the HMC’s central directory of historic manuscripts, the National Archives will be positioned as a ‘research tool and data source’ for both specialists and the general public, says Spencer du Bois management partner Max du Bois.

The consultancy will design the identity along with a brand language, which will be implemented in the main by in-house creative teams. One of the key stages for the new brand will be the ‘common entrance point’ to the PRO and HMC websites, says du Bois, found at www.nationalarchives.gov.uk.

‘One of its core drivers is to be more e-enabled,’ he adds, citing the ‘unprecedented public demand’ for on-line access to the 1900 census last year.

Interest in the National Archives is being fuelled by the boom in family history research and the workings of the ’30 Year Rule’, which opens Government papers to public view.

Spencer du Bois was awarded the work following a five-way credentials pitch and creative director John Spencer is leading its design team.

Du Bois says the brief follows on from the Government’s commitment to freedom of information and has the potential to become ‘a truly awe-inspiring project’.