Branding Case Study starting with pupil designs

Overview of the project

I first began working with Conisbrough Ivanhoe Primary Academy just before the school became an academy. What started as a pupil-led logo project developed into a wider visual identity for the school, including a new academy logo, reward postcards, attendance certificates, star awards and large-scale mission statement wall graphics.

School Name: Conisbrough Ivanhoe Primary Academy

The Challenge

The school wanted to create a strong new identity that genuinely reflected its pupils and values. They asked their pupils (aged between 4 and 11) to design ideas for the new school logo and shortlisted nine entries. Because the designs varied widely in style and finish, the challenge was to give every pupil idea an equal chance by translating each one into a consistent, professional-looking logo option.

The school also wanted visual materials to motivate pupils, improve attendance and make the mission statement more visible, memorable and meaningful for children, parents and visitors.

My approach

I used the children’s original ideas as the starting point, refining them into professional logo concepts while preserving the creativity behind each design. The shortlisted logos were then shared on the headteacher’s blog so pupils and parents could vote for their favourite.

A storytelling theme was carried through the wider design work, using the Ivanhoe knight, star motifs and seasonal details to create a consistent and recognisable visual language across the school’s materials.

What was created

New academy logo design, developed from pupils’ original designs
Mission statement wall graphics
Attendance certificates for each term
Star of the Week certificates
A set of eight collectable Star of the Day postcards

Pupil Powered Design

How pupils were involved

Pupils were involved from the very beginning. Their own logo ideas formed the basis of the new academy identity, and the final choice was made through a school community vote involving children and parents. The reward postcards and certificates were also designed with pupils in mind, encouraging them to engage with the artwork, collect the designs and feel proud of their achievements.

The outcome

The project helped Conisbrough Ivanhoe Primary Academy establish a strong, shared identity. The chosen logo became central to the school’s academy branding, while the postcards and certificates became valued rewards that pupils wanted to collect. The attendance certificates helped support the school’s attendance goals, and the mission statement graphics encouraged pupils, parents and visitors to stop, read and reflect.

Across the school, the designs created a consistent visual story that connected everyday rewards, values and identity through the same recognisable characters and themes.

Testimonial

“What you do brilliantly is take an idea that might be very rough and ill-formed and you polish it up into something bright and sharp and clear. When I have worked with you I have known only vaguely what I have been looking for and you have produced images that seem to be exactly what I have been looking for all along.

In all, we have sixteen items that have been designed by Kathryn from our tiny school logo on our school uniform to our largest Mission Statement Sign which is 4 metres wide and what has happened almost without our realising it is that they have become the symbol of our identity because all the great things we do are expressed in the same elements by the same designer - it has given us an extremely strong identity and sense of selfhood - I would say a corporate identity although one might not think in those terms of a school, but it has helped us to realise who we are and it is a shared, a common realisation, which is a great thing for any organisation.”

Joe Brian, Headteacher, Conisbrough Ivanhoe Primary Academy