Slough Borough Council
Since 2003 www.artsinslough.org.uk has played a key role in the support that Arts Development provides to the arts community in Slough. Over this time the site has evolved and developed a clear identity. In order to keep ahead of web technology developments, ArtsinSlough were undertaking a redevelopment of both the back and front ends of the site. The new site was to sit alongside their sister sites for the Creative Academy and the West Wing with each site using the same wire frame structure, but having an individual look and feel.
The aims of the new website was to promote the work of the Slough Arts Development Team, including the services the team offers. Promote the work of the arts community in Slough, through case studies, listing opportunities and artists and generally providing information about activities and events. It is also to act as a first point of call for information for the community, to access resources and support for their arts activities and offer easily accessible information about arts in the community for local people in Slough, how and where people can get involved in the community arts & public art activities. Work with, for and actively develop the arts in Slough.
Working with the Arts Development Team and the Developer responsible for the back end of the site Sprout Designs produced a design that was accessible to current Standards yet with aspects of the handmade and creative material that complemented the nature of the site.
We were drawn to Sprout Designs primarily because of the quality of their own website, their reputation amongst colleagues and the high level of artistic skill in their work. We wanted a clear identity that moved beyond trends and that we and our arts community would not grow tired of. Sprout designs were able to manage our expectations and provide a solution that showed clear insight into our potential audiences. This was all done with a great deal of flexibility to our workloads and in a very short timeframe.
Sprout Designs were able to take us through the entire process, work-shopping our ideas before coming back with a selection of options and taking on board our feedback. As an arts team we have very strong visual ideas and Sprout designs were able to navigate through these, pulling out the most interesting aspects and putting them together to create a site which speaks to our audience as well as reflecting our aims. Sprout designs were able to communicate clearly with our IT team to implement the site, negotiating between our ideas and the practicalities of e-government, corporate branding and accessibility guidelines. The result is a beautiful site that we’re very proud of.
Through the projects that we have undertaken with Sprout Designs the emphasis has been about dialogue and understanding our needs rather than prescribing a solution that we can fit around. It’s this ethos that makes them so comfortable to work with.”
