Let’s push things forward: why Whizz Kidz is getting a new look

Welcome to our new look! You might have caught glimpses of yellow and a flash of a fresh logo out there on a Whizz Kidz Services van or at an event pictured on our socials. But consider this a first look at our new look, if you like. (We’d have one of those little pairs of velvet curtains for a celeb to open if we could). We’ll explain what’s behind the brand refresh, why it was time to make some improvements and reassure you that it won’t change who we are and what we do.

Why we haven’t changed how we work

It’s not Whizz Kidz or our work that’s changing, just how we look. Our mission remains the same. We’re here to create opportunities for young wheelchair users to get the equipment, skills and confidence to go further. More simply: we’re here for young wheelchair users. And to make that clear for people who haven’t come across us before, it now says that below or by our new logo. As you can see, the new logo has more whizz. It’s full of movement and has a contemporary, youthful edge. It cleverly incorporates our new icon; more on that in a second. 

Sure, the Whizz Kidz brand looks different, but the refresh reflects more accurately who we are for our growing audience. It represents our bold ambition to push things forward for young wheelchair users and shows how we’re buzzing with life, energy and passion. Maybe not surprisingly as it’s been co-created with the young people in our community to embody a positive, welcoming organisation that we’re all proud to be a part of.

At the heart of our brand is our iconic Whizz Kidz symbol which brings another flash of energy in the dynamic form of a lightning bolt, blended with the classic International Symbol of Access to represent the wheelchair user. We hope it will become instantly recognisable as a Whizz Kidz icon.

Why did we need to change how Whizz Kidz looked?

Whizz Kidz is a charity that we’re all very fond of. Many of us will have received life-changing equipment, attended confidence-building events, dedicated hours to volunteering, or run 26.2 miles to raise money, all under the Whizz Kidz name, possibly wearing lime green. So why did we decide to change how we look?

How Whizz Kidz's brand is now accessible

One key reason was to make Whizz Kidz accessible to everyone. Accessibility is so important to us and our community that we needed to see that represented in the brand without compromises. The new colours and fonts have been chosen with that in mind. The contrast between the foreground and background meets the highest standards set by WCAG (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines). We’ll ensure we do everything possible to make all our content as accessible as possible. That goes right down to removing the hyphen between Whizz and Kidz in our name. It doesn’t work well on software that reads screens for people with visual disabilities, so it’s gone. Say a not-that-fond farewell to Whizz-Kidz; we’re Whizz Kidz now (apart from in website URLs and email addresses).

What research did we do?

Much thought went into refreshing the Whizz Kidz brand. We’re conscious of the difference Whizz Kidz has made over the years, so nothing was done on a whim. But our old look wasn’t working well. It had developed over the years, often in ad-hoc and inaccessible ways. There are many youth charities in the UK, and standing out from the crowd is essential. We need to make an impact and inspire people to be part of our movement. 

So we conducted extensive research by talking to different groups directly involved with Whizz Kidz, including service users, employees and the Kidz Board. We also reached out to the broader public to get a view from people unfamiliar with Whizz Kidz. Through this research, it became clear that refreshing the brand would be the best way of pushing Whizz Kidz forward, advancing our work to create a more accessible world and inspiring young wheelchair users to go further in life. 

How our community co-created the new look

We also wanted to bring more of the joy of the young wheelchair users we work with to the brand. Whizz Kidz’s new look was co-created with them. We are an open, welcoming community – built by young people for young people. And so is our brand. To bring the Whizz Kidz world to life, we’ve collaborated with young wheelchair users in our community to create a set of expressive doodles. Each has been hand drawn to aid communication or represent an object, feeling or mood. We’ll add more, created by our young people, to bring excitement and energy to our designs whenever possible.


Who did we work with on the brand refresh?

Whizz Kidz worked with a brand expert, Nick Liddell, whose CV covers everything from the V&A museum to Gucci, and from Cancer Research UK to the Dog’s Trust. The brand refresh work was funded with 55% of the money needed provided pro bono. That included more than the most apparent elements of the logo, icon, typography and colours to take in the charity’s tone of voice, creative principles,  photography and application in the real world. You’ll see it coming to a t-shirt and pin badge on you soon!

What will happen to your existing stock which is now outdated?

Whizz Kidz cares about the environment. We have made sure that we are winding down our current stock over the past year or so. From July, we will be using new-look stock, but anything we have not been able to use in the old branding will be recycled or distributed to our supporters or other charities. Nothing will go to waste.  

When does the new look launch?

You’ll spot some of the refreshed brand already, but the official launch day and switchover is the 29th June, 2023. We can’t wait to fully roll it out and will be making sure Whizz Kidz always looks and feels its brilliant best.