A house for the people
We created a visual identity for House of the People. An Assemble project bringing together people from across the country to demonstrate how deliberative democracy could help shift politics and policy in the UK.
With/for: Assemble (2025)
A House of the People must be built differently to Westminster, this is something we can all build together, it’s open, accessible, and unfinished. The house is in progress because the people taking part in the process will collectively create its outcomes. Instead of being fixed in its ways, this kind of politics is constantly changing and keeping up with the times.
Bricks being laid symbolised this collective construction, the building of a new kind of politics. The humble brick is a democratic symbol, as an everyday object, it forms part of the places we all live and work whatever part of society we represent. It also has a more subtle radical reference to street protests, riots, and social upheaval being a sibling to the paving stone. The brick can smash the old system as well as build a new one.
An outreach campaign featuring bus stop posters, leaflets and posters preceded the event. Highlighting the sortition part of the process. 50% of the first house of the people were selected like a lottery through a process that helped ensure this random group were also representative of society.
The first sitting of House of the People took place at the venerable Conway Hall, London in July 2025. A group of 100 citizens, selected by sortition and delegated from local assemblies that were organised in the first part of 2025 deliberated on the important issues of our day in order to agree on a People's Charter. The modular visual identity was applied to boxes serving as a physical manifestation of bricks in the process of building this new House.
Printed assets helped facilitators guide the participants through the deliberative process, presenting key facts on the issues to be discussed.
