Welcome to the Sign Design Society
The Sign Design Society (SDS) is for anyone interested in information and graphic communication within buildings and public spaces, including:
- Wayfinding
- Interpretative graphics
- Brand and experiential/environmental graphics
- Statutory and health & safety signs
As well as raising the profile of our disciplines, we offer members a programme of events, resources and initiatives to help them:
- Keep up to date and improve their practice
- Find potential consultants, collaborators & employees
- Promote their work and capabilities
To join choose a membership plan that suits you and sign up!
Our events
Sensory mapping is an emerging practice that helps people, especially neurodivergent individuals and those with sensory sensitivities, anticipate the sensory qualities of buildings and public spaces. Buro Happold’s research, aligned with PAS 6463 principles of clarity, choice and calm, explored how sensory maps can better reflect lived experience through co-creation, workshops, literature review and a global survey. The study highlights how sensory information is communicated, the challenges of representing sensory experiences, and the potential for sensory maps to support more inclusive wayfinding and confident navigation of the built environment.
Interested in a membership?
News
2nd edition Sign design guide now available to buy!
The new edition of the guide continues to provide practical guidance to experts and non-specialists alike, based on both best practice in inclusive design and the latest research.
Third party events
This exhibition will chart Walker’s importance in the world of typography and printing in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, from his first private press involvement with the founding and operation of William Morris’s Kelmscott Press (1891–1898), his partnership with Thomas James Cobden-Sanderson at the Doves Press (1900–1917), through to his final printing collaboration with Wilfred Merton and Bruce Rogers.
To mark the Center’s 40th anniversary, we are launching Open Flat File, a lecture series inspired by the ethos of the Flat File website, The ten designers and artists listed below were invited into our archive of nearly 80,000 objects to select a single work to study closely and respond to. They will then translate their research into both a public lecture and a poster that reinterprets and contextualizes the object they chose.
Lectures are free and open to the public.
RSVP is required and will be made available closer to the event.
Spring 2027
Spring 2027
Spring 2027
Spring 2027
Presented by
With support from
and
Open Flat file
marks the tenth year of the publication and the Center’s 40th anniversary with a ten-part lecture series. Ten designers, artists, and researchers are invited to each select a single object from the collection and will respond to it through a free public talk at The Cooper Union.
Alan Kitching’s first full scale exhibition in Japan brings a vast array of his work to an international audience.
Healthy City Design 2026 returns to the Lowry in Salford, Greater Manchester on 20–22 October 2026 under the theme “Breakdown or breakthrough?” The Congress will explore bold strategies that place health at the centre of urban transformation – bringing an interdisciplinary focus across research, investment, development, design, planning and public health. Cities across the world […]
the 7th annual Design + Accessibility Summit, the essential how-to event for creating accessible content. Across four days of practical, expert-led sessions, you’ll learn proven workflows for creating accessible content with InDesign, Acrobat, Illustrator, PowerPoint, Word, Canva, and more.