After recent and impactful changes to senior leadership, combined with a hard-won and well-earned grade increase from Ofsted, City of Bristol College was radiating with renewed positivity and ambition. Initially, they came to us with a more narrowly defined brief, but through conversation and collaboration, we quickly identified the need for bold, large-scale transformation. They needed to draw a line in the sand, proudly shout about the college’s significant improvements, and reaffirm its position as the Bristol College—a leading institution of further and higher education in the region.

Working closely alongside leadership, dedicated staff, and student community, we wrote a clear yet powerful proposition from which the entire brand identity would stem: Where Next? A deliberately open-ended question intended to challenge, provoke self-examination, and inspire a mindset of continual growth and improvement. What came after was a bold new visual identity with the exciting twists, turns, and unpredictable momentum of taking a path forward and discovering where the future might lead.

Featuring a central logo marque full of vibrant, electric gradients, a graphic system bursting with movement and typography that imitates progression. But visual identity was only one piece of the puzzle—unification across the entire college brand was a strong, driving motivation for reevaluation. There was a need for a structured brand architecture system, one that would give deserved prominence to key academic provisions without straying from the master brand. As well as a requirement for an updated signage system that could spotlight each of the five campuses while still uniting them under one singular identity.

The new City of Bristol College brand is bold, proud, and designed to be seen, felt, and experienced by all—students, staff, partners, and communities—across every corner of the city.