The Cheltenham Design Foundation

In 2009, a group of design professionals living and working in Gloucestershire founded the Cheltenham Design Foundation. Operating as a charity, the Foundation is committed to promoting the benefits of design and creativity to people from all backgrounds, from design professionals to the general public and the designers of the future.
Through two strands – a Design Festival and a Design Academy – the Foundation shows how original thinking changes lives, improves wellbeing and enhances prosperity.

In its relatively short life, the Foundation has organised three major festivals as well as a ‘Summer Series’, bringing world-class speakers from many areas of the creative sphere to a wide audience eager to discover how design can change our lives for the better. The Design Academy, the Foundation’s free Saturday school for young people, gives 14-16 year olds the opportunity to explore a wide range of creative subjects under the guidance of professional designers.

Since its inception, the Foundation has received generous financial support from a variety of sponsors, large and small.