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How designing with communities, not for them leads to safer, more trusted services
In the third sector, good intentions are never in short supply. What’s harder to achieve is clarity, especially when the systems we design are meant to support people at moments of stress, uncertainty or vulnerability.
Too often, services are launched to communities rather than with them. And while the aim may be positive, the result can be confusion, low uptake or unintended harm. Co-design offers a gentler, more effective path forward. One rooted in listening before acting.
Why Listening Comes First
At Studio Soren, we see listening as an act of care. It’s a principle rooted in our belief to listen first, design second. A value we share openly on our About Us page.
Before a single screen is designed or a process mapped, we begin with user research, not as a box ticking exercise, but as a way to understand lived experience. In the third sector, research is most effective when it’s grounded in empathy and trust, aligning closely with human centred approaches such as those outlined by the Government Digital Service.
For charities and non-profits, this means creating space for people to share where systems feel heavy, unclear or intimidating.
These moments are often described as pain points:
A form that feels overwhelming when energy is already low.
A service handover where no one is quite sure what happens next.
Language that unintentionally excludes or confuses.
By listening carefully, patterns emerge. And with clarity, teams can focus on what truly matters, supporting people.
Co-Design as a Form of Service
Co-design is sometimes misunderstood as “asking users what they want.” In reality, it’s about working alongside communities to shape safer, more trusted services. Approaches like those recommended by THRE’s human-rights-led service design framework remind us that equity and dignity must sit at the heart of design work.
Through facilitated workshops, a core part of our service design practice,charities can bring together:
People with lived experience.
Frontline staff.
Service managers and decision makers.
Using service design methods, these groups can explore challenges together, surface assumptions and imagine better ways of working. This collaborative space often leads to small but meaningful insights, changes that reduce friction, improve dignity and build trust.
Importantly, co-design also supports teams internally. It creates shared understanding, breaks down silos and fosters a growth mindset where learning is continuous rather than fixed.
From Insight to Action: Blueprinting Better Services
Listening matters, but it’s what we do with what we hear that makes the difference.
Service design helps teams move from insight to understanding. One of the ways we do this is through service blueprinting; a calm, shared way of looking at how a service really works.
A blueprint lays out the journey from a person’s point of view, alongside the quieter work happening behind the scenes. When teams see both together, it becomes easier to notice where experiences don’t quite match intentions.
For charities and non-profits, this often helps to:
Uncover gaps between what people experience and how services are delivered.
Spot repeated steps, delays or unnecessary effort that drain time and energy.
Create a shared picture teams can return to when things feel complex or unclear.
Blueprints don’t need to be polished or perfect. Their real value is in making the invisible visible, so decisions can be made with care and improvements come from understanding rather than assumption.
Designing Together
Every project is an opportunity to learn. When charities, designers and communities grow together, the result is not just better services, but stronger relationships.
By approaching design as a collaborative act of listening, reflection and shared problem solving, the third sector can build systems that are not only functional, but kind.
And in work like this, kindness is not a soft extra.
It’s the foundation.
References:
Government Digital Service (2023) User research in government services. Available at: https://www.gov.uk/service-manual/user-research (Accessed: 5 February 2026).
Studio Soren (2026) About us. Available at: https://studiosoren.com/about-us (Accessed: 5 February 2026).
Studio Soren (2026) Services. Available at: https://studiosoren.com/services (Accessed: 5 February 2026).
Third Sector Human Rights and Equalities (THRE) (2023) Service Design: A Human Rights and Equalities First Approach. Available at: https://thre.org.uk/topic/service-design/ (Accessed: 5 February 2026).