Architects of the Future x Experience Haus App Design Competition
This month, Experience Haus and Matter of Form hosted a group of young boys from the charity Football Beyond Borders, as part of their ‘Architects of the Future’ project.
Football Beyond Borders works with young people from areas of socio-economic disadvantage who are passionate about football, but disengaged at school, to help them complete their studies with the skills and grades to make a successful transition into adulthood.
As part of the project, the boys were challenged to come up with an idea for a new app designed specifically for enriching young people’s lives in the future. In many ways, these digital technologies make our lives easier, but can also lead to stress and anxiety. The boys were required to think about what a digital world could look like if young people were in charge. They could choose from the following two options:
- Designing for the community
The community is a big part of everyone’s upbringing and development, and so needs to thrive and develop in the best way possible. Those who chose this route were asked to think about:
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- What their definition of community is
- How do their communities show up for them
- How do their communities help them find out who they are
- How would their app enhance/help with their communities
2. Designing for play
Lots of product are designed for complex issues, but it doesn’t mean play and fun can’t be part of it. The groups that chose this option had to consider:
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- What was their definition of ‘play’
- How do people/friends around them enjoy play
- How can play help you find out who you are
- How could the app enhance the idea of play
They boys had two weeks to come up with an idea that answered all of the questions above. During this time, they had to come up with an idea, create a short user journey to explain what the experience of the app would look like, gather feedback to ensure their idea was relevant, and come up with a short 5 minute presentation pulling the whole process and design together.
There were 8 groups in total that presented their concepts, from groups of 5 to individuals. Everyone was thoroughly impressed with the amount of work everyone put in over the short period of time, and the confidence they each had when presenting. After the presentation, it was up to our expert panel from Matter of Form to hand out three awards: Best Concept, Best Presentation and Best Logo Design.
Reflecting on the day, the School Programme Lead Jeremie Tchibo commented “Our Year 9 boys from Harris Morden Academy absolutely loved their day at the Experience Haus studio, meeting with young professionals and getting a taste for a real-life work environment. They visited the office as part of their project, Architects of the Future, which was designed to raise their aspirations for the future. The boys absolutely loved the office space, meeting the office dog and getting feedback from the kind and charismatic team, who were so warm and positive about their work. Most importantly, the boys had fun! We’re so grateful to the whole team at Experience Haus, who made this experience really special for our young people.”
We thoroughly enjoy being part of these kinds of initiatives that help young people explore future careers and take their next step towards adulthood.
