ASHA updates Duke of Edinburgh identity

The Duke of Edinburgh Award has modernised its image with the help of brand design group Arthur Steen Horne Adamson.

The refreshed DofE logo and visual identity will be rolled out over the coming year, across the new website, photography style, magazine and printed materials.

‘Our brief was to breathe life back into the programme – to modernise it and make it more relevant to young people,’ explains ASHA creative director Marksteen Adamson, who has been leading the project since November 2006.

‘The previous visual language was too generic and didn’t match the breadth and excitement of the DofE programme itself,’ says Adamson. ‘It was too focused on the expedition, when actually the DofE programme encompasses skill, residential, volunteering, expedition and physical challenges, and we needed to reflect that.’

A new photographic element was key to the rebrand. Strong inspirational portraits of DofE participants appear across the new visual scheme to celebrate the individuals who take part and redefine old-fashioned perceptions of what the award programme involves.

‘We have looked at a broad cross-section of British children, from a multitude of different classes, cultures and backgrounds – and we felt that the DofE brand needed to be relevant to all of those,’ says Adamson.

Subtle use of gold, silver and bronze in the new colour scheme reflects each different level of achievement within the DofE programme.

The new simplified DofE logo promotes the idea of accessibility, while Prince Philip’s distinctive cipher has been kept to retain a sense of brand heritage, explains Adamson.

Tapping into the popularity of social networking sites such as Facebook and Bebo, the next phase of the DofE revamp comprises a new ‘online record book’ where participants can blog about their experiences in a cyber community.