Records of the British Transport Commission and British Railways Board, Design Panel

Division within AN

1955-1989

The records of the Design Panel of the British Transport Commission and British Railways Board, established in 1956 to meet the design needs of the commission, document locomotive and carriage design and the development of corporate images.

They include registered files in AN 160; committee minutes in AN 164, design murals in AN 162, reports in AN 163, and photographs in AN 161

Public Record(s)

English

• British Railways Board, Design Panel, 1963-1989
• British Transport Commission, Design Panel, 1956-1963

5 series

Topics

Railways

Transport management

The Design Panel was founded in 1956 by the British Transport Commission to oversee the design needs of the commission's subsidiaries. It undertook its task via the Design Officer, an employee of the commission. In 1962, on abolition of the commission, the panel became attached to the British Railways Board.

The panel took charge of the development of the corporate image of British Rail. The Design Officer became the Director of Industrial Design and was responsible for the release of the corporate image standards.

In 1987, a new department under the control of the Director of Architecture, Design and Environment took over the work of the Design Panel, although the panel remained in existence as an advisory unit. It had ceased to exist by November 1989.