Press and Promotion

Material in DCA/6 primarily covers the extended period 1945-1980. The 170 files remaining in this series undoubtedly represent only a small proportion of the volume of press-related administration generated over this time-frame. Notwithstanding this, the papers are indicative of the complex press contacts the Council sought to maintain (trade, trade union, technical, professional, provincial, international, women"s interest, specialist, general, in-house), and the quality of these interactions. The Press Office handled publicity and press statements relating to the full sphere of Council activities, the best represented here being exhibitions (DCA/6/1568 and DCA/6/1005), awards (DCA/6/1646) and conferences. A body of writings by Gordon Russell, the Council"s second Director, and often intended for press publication, are also located here (DCA/6/192), some of which date back to before the origins of the Council.

A collection of the Council"s press-cuttings and press releases is also held in the following sub-series:

6:1 Press cuttings

6:2 Press releases

6:3 Press releases on Design Centre Awards

Good relations with the Press were important to the fledgling Council, and remained vital to the transmission of clear information about its aims and activities over the course of time. Following the 1947 departure of the first Director, S.C. Leslie, and his colleague Alan Jarvis, who each had acknowledged public relations skills, a section was formally put in place to make good the loss.

The surviving files have been retained in their original numeric order as allocated by the Council"s Registry. This means that records in a series do not necessarily have consecutive file numbers, and may not be located together.

Russell, Gordon, 'Designer's Trade: Autobiography of Gordon Russell', London: Allen & Unwin, 1968