One of our Designing for the Future judges, Ruth Rose, told me about an exciting new charity yesterday, the Hospice Biographers. The Hospice Biographers is a nationwide charity that offers terminally ill patients the chance to have their life stories professionally recorded on audio for their relief and pleasure and so that their families will
We were very excited to learn that talented potter Finola Maynard has been chosen to be a part of ITV's The People's Project supported by the Big Lottery Fund. With her community organisation Pop Up Pottery Creative Healing, Finola plans to offer free pottery workshops to people experiencing isolation, social anxiety or some form of
We were excited yesterday to launch Designing for the Future 2017 at the University of Brighton's newly refurbished Edward Street building. Now in its eighth year, hundreds of UK design students have taken part in this project devised by Philippa Aldrich of The Future Perfect Company to encourage designers to consider the challenges of ageing
Designing for the future alumnus, Brighton-based artist Jack Durling has just unveiled his latest body of work, "Oil Slick, Sea Birds". Having a passion for conservation and the preservation of wildlife, Jack has used clay to highlight and explore the very real problem of the consumption of oil, focusing on how this directly affects sea
We were delighted to hear that Howard Croft, an early contributor to the former incarnation of this blog, has just published his first book. Howard's hugely enjoyable and often irreverent insights into the world of retirement ran on an almost weekly basis for several years. Howard went on to write over 250 articles for the
In the new year The Future Perfect Company will be changing. Gone will be the shop and instead the emphasis will shift to “Designing for the Future”. And here’s why. When I opened the shop 6 years ago, it was an attempt to focus on the ageing market. I was in my late 40s
Peter Dale from South EastEngland Forum on Ageing (SEEFA) was one of our Designing for the Future judges this year and Philippa was delighted to be asked by him to join the AGE UK and SEEFA Policy Panel on Later Life and Ageing at the stunning Royal Air Force Club in London in November. SEEFA and Age UK
This year’s Designing for the Future Competition invited students from the University of Brighton’s College of Arts & Humanities to develop innovative new products and design concepts to benefit people affected by dementia. A parallel project with students studying product design investigated smart technology. In each case, students were encouraged to produce design outcomes
Jack Durling windsocks Children from Balfour Primary School in Brighton had special inspiration from an art collection from the University of Brighton when they created their own works for this year’s Open Houses Festival. Specially selected items from the Aldrich Collection of Contemporary Art were installed at the school in a mission
We are always excited to find out to hear from our talented Designing for the Future alumni and find out what they are up to. Chloe Meineck, designer of the Music Memory Box will be showcasing her work at this year's Alzheimers Show at London's Olympia on 10-11 June. Chloe has also joined the
