Folk England - Next Steps
Reflecting our commitment to making folk more welcoming to everyone, we’re pleased to share the next steps in our name change journey.
Following the news we shared at the end of last year about changing our trading name to Folk England, we’re excited to share the next steps in our journey. The Board has decided that it would be helpful to have a single name and unified brand for the charity and its various parts. Therefore, Folk England will be used as the name for the organisation itself – the English Folk Dance and Song Society (EFDSS) – as well as for the building (Cecil Sharp House/CSH) and the library (the Vaughan Williams Memorial Library/VWML).
This name change is about making folk more open and welcoming for everyone. While Cecil Sharp’s name holds a special place in the folk community, it is less familiar to people discovering folk arts for the first time, and “Cecil Sharp House” doesn’t signal that we are England’s folk-centred arts venue. Similarly, although the Vaughan Williams Memorial Library is highly respected within folk circles, its name does not indicate to wider audiences that it is a specialist folk library. As Ralph Vaughan Williams is better known as a classical composer than as a collector of folk songs, the name can also be confusing. A single, clear brand will help people understand immediately who we are, what we do, and that everyone is welcome to explore, learn, and take part.
Bringing all parts of the organisation together under one name will also help to connect the different aspects of what we offer. Right now, many people don’t realise that the venue, library, and EFDSS are all part of the same organisation with a national remit to champion the folk arts, and even those familiar with us often mix up the names. A unified identity will make our purpose clearer, strengthen our partnerships, and open up exciting opportunities to reach audiences and supporters.
Inside our Camden headquarters and venue, Cecil Sharp’s name will be recognised within the building, alongside spaces already carrying other names significant to our history including Kennedy, Trefusis, and Storrow, and Vaughan Williams’ name will remain within the library.
Alongside the name change, we’ll be introducing a fresh new visual identity and website. At the moment, having three separate logos can dilute our impact and create confusion, particularly online. Having one clear, cohesive identity represented by a single logo will help bring all areas of our work together, making it easier for people to discover, connect with, and engage in folk arts.
Finally, our website was last updated eight years ago and is well overdue for an upgrade. We believe the new capabilities a redesigned site will bring will support our work and help us reach new people and serve our members better. To maximise efficiency, we will develop a new website alongside the creation of a new visual identity. We have reallocated existing marketing budget to cover the design and branding work, while the cost of building the new website will be covered through core income.
We’ve now appointed an agency to bring this vision to life, and we’re looking forward to sharing more updates with you in the months ahead.
