To appoint Anagram as our external graphic designer

OPDC are drafting three key strategy documents, all of which will be public facing documents and used by OPDC to accompany promotional material to engage important stakeholders and the wider public on our upcoming plans to regenerate London’s biggest and most important brownfield development opportunity. This will also include a bank of design assets that will be used in future communications and engagement documents, which is highlighted in further detail in section 4.

To support this, we require these documents to be compelling, with bespoke maps, diagrams and infographics that goes beyond our own in-house capabilities, to effectively help these documents standout. Therefore, we needed a graphic designer who could use aspects of our brand guidelines as a baseline to freshen these three documents, making them more accessible, modern and engaging.

The three documents for the graphic designer to prepare are the Corporate Strategy, the Old Oak Regeneration Strategy and the Sustainability Charter. Each strategy has its own detailed overview, brief, key audience and key aims, with further details provided in section 2.

An independent competitive procurement process took place in April and in line with OPDC’s Contracts and Funding Code and Procurement Guidance. This process was conducted s by the Director of Communications and colleagues from design and delivery who assessed the submissions. Three graphic design agencies were sent the design brief and Anagram were confirmed as the preferred design partner. Anagram are a brand-led creative studio based in London, who have worked with and created brands for a range of industries. Collectively, the team has a deep set of knowledge and experience in strategic branding and marketing across a wide range of industries and sectors.
 

This proposal is for the expenditure of £14,000 for Anagram to design the three key documents mentioned in 1.3.

Each strategy will be a public-facing document, which will contain bespoke diagrams and a suite of photography supplied by OPDC. Within each strategy we want to design an accessible, engaging and aspirational document that is reflective of its individual brief, audience and aims.

The Corporate Strategy will be the corporation’s principle driving strategy for the next two-to-three years. It will provide an overview of who we are; what we do; our vision, mission and values; and our core objectives, shaping our organisational direction. We want the designed strategy to provide an easily digestible and compelling narrative for OPDC’s company ethos and work, with our key aims to:

• Communicate our vision, mission and values effectively with key keyholders
• Demonstrate progress in achieving our corporate goals
• Raise awareness about what we are and what we do
• Build creditability, advocacy and interest for our development proposal

The Old Oak Regeneration Strategy sets out OPDC’s ambition for the comprehensive regeneration over the next 20-30 years. Informed collaboratively with central government, key stakeholders and the local community it sets out a project vision, key principles and a series of actions and measures for how the scheme will be delivered. We want the designed strategy to convey the regeneration opportunity at Old Oak in an accessible, impactful and visual way, using imagery, photography, infographics, iconography and bespoke diagrams and maps, with our key aims to:

• Demonstration ambition – we want to be exemplar in social, environmental and economic development, addressing key issues, pioneering innovative ideas and championing high-quality placemaking
• Communicate our vision and priorities for sustainable and inclusive regeneration at Old Oak
• Build support and advocacy by making the opportunity compelling, relatable and attractive
• Set out an expectation for developers ahead of procuring a major development/investment partner in 2025

The Sustainability Charter will outline OPDC’s Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) vision and principals, forming an umbrella structure for all OPDC land and activities. This will be an accessible document that speaks to investors, local residents, as well as OPDC staff. We want the designed strategy in a way that gets people excited about the area’s future potential, with our key aims to:

• Clearly articulate the sustainability vision for OPDC
• Position OPDC at the forefront of sustainability thinking in the industry
• Resource for OPDC, which employees, partners and investors can read to understand and buy in to our sustainability ambition
• Engage with local residents and successfully communicate the positive environmental, economic and social impacts for the local area

This work will take place between May and June of 2024. Funding for this work will be split between the Communications, Engagement and Strategy Budget and the Delivery budget approved for 2024/25.

We have a variety of key audiences in which each strategy needs to target, these include:

• OPDC Board
• Local Boroughs
• Local community, businesses and residents
• Developers and industry stakeholders
• Key partners, national, local and regional stakeholders
• Wider public
• Central Government
• OPDC staff

All formats need to be of high quality and layout and will all draw on aspects of our branding, with each strategy being consistent in design and branding style.

The outcome of this work will be to have a range of accessible and compelling strategies, that anyone can use and understand, that enable us to positively engage key stakeholders and the wider public on our upcoming plans.

Anagram will ensure OPDC has a fresh look and feel across the strategies, making them compelling, engaging, modern and accessible. They will ensure this is completed with a variety of activity on the design concept that include:

• Compelling, relevant and distinctive visuals that work seamlessly across print and digital
• Develop a suite of brand assets, i.e. iconography, map, diagrams and tables; and
• Completing a presentation on two concepts and assets for concept sign off

Anagram will develop the design further to include brochure cover and sample spreads styles and also use typesetting to arrange all text and images on a page to ensure the content of each document is clear, engaging and easy to follow.
 

The Senior Responsible Officer for the procurement and delivery of Anagram will be the Director of Communications, Engagement and Strategy and Director of Delivery. OPDC’s Senior Communications Officer and the Senior Development Manager for Sustainability will provide day-to-day support and quality control on the documents, ensuring that deadlines are met.

The Senior Responsible Officers will liaise closely with the regeneration and communications team providing overarching project and budget assurance. They will work with Anagram to devise design, layout providing approvals on drafts and revisions.

Risks and issues

Under Section 149 of the Equality Act 2010, as a public authority, OPDC must have ‘due regard’ to the need to eliminate unlawful discrimination, harassment and victimisation as well as to the need to advance equality of opportunity and foster
good relations between people who share a protected characteristic and those who do not.

A key outcome of this work will be to ensure that all documents are fully accessible and inclusive to a diverse range of audiences. All materials will be written in Plain English, adhering to the GLA’s accessibility guidelines and also that designs, imagery and photography reflect the rich diversity of the community in Old Oak and Londoners.

The timescale for this work is tight, with completion on the design for these three strategies to be completed for June 2024. A key consideration when appointing Anagram was the tight communications which meant:

• Weekly work-in-progress meetings between OPDC and Anagram project team (followed up with a detailed contact report)
• Monthly budget reconciliation meetings – with a written report and added to the weekly work-in-progress meeting

No one involved in the preparation or clearance of this form, or its substantive proposal, has any conflicts of interests.

The expenditure of £14,000 will be split between the Communications and Engagement and Delivery Team Budgets. Expenditure of £4,666 will be met from the Communications and Engagement budget, which sits within the CEO directorate. The other £9,334 will be met from the Delivery directorate.

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