Insights - NEC Digital Studio

20 May 2026 · Articles

GAAD 2026: Building accessibility in from the start

Our in-house Accessibility Specialist Julie Watts shares some reflections for Global Accessibility Awareness Day 2026.

20 April 2026 · Articles

Exploring hope and fears for AI for those working in Youth Justice

Insights from NEC Digital Studio workshops, conducted in conjunction with the Association of YOT Managers (AYM), exploring their hopes and fears around the use of AI in practice.

A doctor speaking a to a patient, smiling.

13 March 2026 · Articles

Why Systems Thinking Is Fast Becoming the NHS’s Missing Lens

Insights from NEC Digital Studio’s recent webinar, Why Systems Thinking Is Vital to the NHS, featuring experts from NHS England and Loughborough University.

An illuminated, metallic abstract image on a dark blue background, with thin lines connecting small dots together to represent connections forming in multiple places.

29 January 2026 · Articles

Zooming in, zooming out: Designing healthcare services with a systems thinking approach

Danny Weston, Client Partner at NEC Digital Studio, explains why designing healthcare systems with a systems thinking approach can improve how care is delivered.

19 January 2026 · Articles

Service Design in the Housing Sector

In November, we spent two days in Glasgow with the team from Barrhead Housing. Becky Mallaband, our Head of Design School caught up with Colin McCulloch (Director of Customer Services) soon after the training, to understand the importance of Service Design in their organisation and the housing sector.

12 December 2025 · Articles

Made for Life 2025: How can organisations work more effectively to protect and support women and children

During the UN’s 16 Days of Activism against Gender-based Violence we brought together survivors, police officers, policy leaders, probation services, charities and justice experts to explore how to prevent victim-survivors and perpetrators from slipping through the gaps.

A doctor using a telephone to contact a patient

2 December 2025 · Articles

Accessibility in healthcare: Making care work for everyone

Accessibility in healthcare isn’t just compliance—it’s care. By making digital experiences and documents inclusive, providers can protect dignity, build trust, and deliver equitable, high-quality care for everyone.

17 November 2025 · Articles

Why systems thinking may be the perfect complement to an ambitious 10 Year Health Plan

Principal Service Designer, Amber Polley explains why systems thinking would be a useful approach for reforming integrated care, and suggests that using a common language to share best practice might help to maximise the benefits.

24 September 2025 · Articles

From neglect to necessity: Enterprise UX and its critical role in healthcare

Surabhi Trivedi, Product Designer at NEC Digital Studio, shares insights from her experience designing enterprise healthcare systems, highlighting why thoughtful UX is essential to safer, more efficient care, and how design teams can meet the complex demands of clinical environments.

A graphical illustration of 2 hexagonal shapes. In the foreground of one is the word 'Policy' in large text. In the forefront of the other is the word 'Design' in smaller text.

27 March 2025 · Articles

Opening the door to user-centred design in policy creation

In this article, our Head of Design Gavin Maguire explores how government ministers are now embracing the value of user-centred design (UCD) and why this provides a great context for practitioners to help policy-makers adopt the approach.

A graphic illustration of a book lying flat and open with 2 pages in view. The word 'playbook' is written underneath.

4 February 2025 · Articles · News

Our playbook powers services that work for life’s complexities

The NEC Digital Studio playbook is now publicly available online, full of information about what we do and the unique approach we take. Two of its creators – Strategy Director Phee Kinnear and Propositions Lead Annie Tucker – chat about why it’s there and how people can use it.

An orange outlined illustration of a house.

16 January 2025 · Articles

The role of service design in social housing

In this blog post, Becky Mallaband, our Head of Learning Design talks to Dave Skinner (formerly of Incommunities Housing Association) about the role Service Design has to play in the housing sector.