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Why the GOV.UK rebrand backlash misses the point

The UK government spent £500k refreshing the GOV.UK brand, but critics are missing the real story. We explore what changed, why it matters, and what smaller organisations can learn.

Comparison of the old and new GOV.UK logos: the top version has a white crown and GOV.UK text on a black background, and the new version has the crown and GOV.UK text in white with a turquoise dot on a blue background.

The UK Government recently rolled out a refreshed brand identity for GOV.UK — and revealed it cost £500,000.

Cue the outrage.

“Civil servants spend £500k on new GOV.UK logo” said LBC.
“Looks the same!” came the social media replies.
“A colour bar? Really?”

But this kind of backlash misses what brand evolution is actually for — especially in the public sector, where clarity, trust and usability are everything.

This wasn’t about a logo. It was about improving how millions of people experience government services — from tax returns to benefits to passports.

A GOV.UK brand guideline slide titled “The Dot,” describing the turquoise dot as a bridge between government and the UK, used in the wordmark and across channels as a guiding hand, with a large GOV.UK logo featuring the dot.
Storyboard of mobile screens showing how the GOV.UK turquoise dot can guide users through information about DBS checks, highlighting steps, timelines, and required details in a clear, sequential design.

What actually changed?

The updated identity is subtle by design — but it’s far from cosmetic.

The rebrand included:

  • A more accessible logotype
  • Better flexibility for long department names and sub-brands
  • A simplified colour system for digital use and print consistency
  • Updated layout guidance for real-world implementation
  • Improved typographic standards for mobile and screen reading
  • A full update of GOV.UK’s brand guidelines
  • A transparent, open-source design system available on GitHub

 

As the official brand guidelines put it, this work supports “consistent and clear presentation of GOV.UK and government departments to the public.”

This wasn’t a new look. It was a foundation for long-term clarity.

A collage of GOV.UK brand elements including the crown logo, “Don’t forget to vote” message, percentage figures, the GOV.UK app icon, GDS Transport font, colourful circles, lock icon, and the GOV.UK wordmark with a turquoise dot.
A collection of GOV.UK data visualisations and UI elements showing percentages, UK regional map, pie charts, bar charts, line graphs, most viewed services, and infographic-style layouts in GOV.UK brand colours.

GOV.UK isn’t a campaign. It’s infrastructure.

The GOV.UK website supports more than 2,000 services across hundreds of departments and bodies. It’s not a marketing site — it’s a critical piece of public infrastructure used by millions every day.

A coherent, flexible brand system helps ensure:

  • Consistent design across a vast range of teams and outputs
  • Fewer mistakes, faster delivery, and less duplicated effort
  • Increased trust from the public
  • Better accessibility for people with visual impairments or cognitive needs

 

These may not be headline-grabbing changes, but they’re vital. Because when branding fails at this scale, the results are confusing, inaccessible, and inefficient.

A GOV.UK brand guideline slide explaining “The dot is a guide and companion,” showing examples of how the turquoise dot is used to guide, highlight, illustrate, and inform users, including voter registration, cost of living support, a piggy bank icon, and service usage statistics.

But was it worth £500k?

In context? Yes.

This wasn’t £500k for a logo. It was for a multi-year project to clarify, codify, and modernise a design system that touches every part of government communication – and, by extension, public life.

Think of it this way…

A good brand system isn’t a nice-to-have. It’s the foundation of how services are experienced.


So rather than ask “Was this worth it?”, we should be asking “What’s the cost of not doing this properly?” (Brand inconsistency, public mistrust, accessibility failures, slow delivery — to name a few.)

Lessons for smaller organisations

We get it. Our clients aren’t spending £500k(!)… and they don’t need to.

But they’re still dealing with:

  • Messy, inconsistent materials across teams
  • A logo that doesn’t work at small sizes or across digital formats
  • Difficulty staying aligned when multiple people are creating content
  • The growing pain of needing to look more joined-up, more credible, more trustworthy

 

A brand refresh doesn’t have to be big or flashy. It just needs to work.

And like the GOV.UK project, it should be:

  • Built with flexibility in mind
  • Designed to scale as your organisation grows
  • Accessible and inclusive by default
  • Clear enough for your whole team to use — and for your audiences to trust

 

If that sounds like something you need, we can help.

What makes this refresh different?

One of the most impressive aspects of the GOV.UK rebrand is how openly it’s been done. Anyone can:

  • Download the official brand guidelines
  • Browse the source files on GitHub
  • See how the colour system improves contrast
  • Review the type hierarchy and usage rationale

 

This level of transparency sets a new benchmark for how brand systems can (and should) be developed in the public interest.

Applying this thinking to your brand

At Design Tribe we support public sector, charity, life sciences, energy, and purpose-led teams to evolve their brands — not reinvent them unnecessarily.

That might mean:

  • Reworking your brand for accessibility and consistency
  • Creating flexible templates your team can actually use
  • Helping you feel proud (and in control) of how you present your organisation
  • Refreshing your identity to reflect who you are now — and where you’re heading

Whether you’re dealing with stakeholder confusion, accessibility issues, or just a brand that no longer fits, we help you move forward with clarity and confidence.

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