Dutchscot’s Hungry Worms identity for dementia book-sharing initiative

Hungry Worms has been set up by Darren Gormley, who previously worked for Age UK. The initiative sees books donated by the public in a number of London coffee shops. Carers then take these books into the homes of people living with dementia. After being read, they are returned so that they can be borrowed again.

Dutchscot co-founder Ross Goulden says: “Being at home living with dementia can be a pretty lonely experience, so reading and getting absorbed by a good book is something that ends up being really important.”

The branding for Hungry Worms is based around a series of “worms” characters. Each represents a different type of book genre, such as comedy or thriller.

Goulden says the Hungry Worms wordmark is intended to reference “a title of a book or a chapter heading” and all typography is in Plantin, “the classic book typeface”. Colours are based on old-fashioned library card inserts.

Each book in the scheme gets its own insert and holes are punched in this every time a book is borrowed and read.

The holes motif is also used on Hungry Worms business cards. Here, they deliberately obscure some of the text telling the “story” of Hungry Worms, which Goulden says is a “subtle hint” at dementia.

Posters were also put up at each sharing hub to encourage book donations – each features a Hungry Worm going on its own journey.

Goulden says the Hungry Worms programme is broadening out to serve not just people living with dementia but also those with other mental health issues.