Learning Experience Design + Creative Strategy

Black and white photo of Natalie Rodden, learning designer and creative strategist
Hand-drawn eye with yellow pupil and lines suggesting eyelashes or rays on black background

Next gen learning for brands with one eye on the future

Hi, I’m Nat.

I turn what matters to you

into learning that matters to young people.

So you can show up for them.

Before you need them.

Young people are your future

Black and white photo of students hands, stacked on top of each other, at a workshop.

Your future customers.

Your future talent.

Your future relevance.

start before you need them

Young people are already forming ideas about the brands, industries and issues that will matter to them later.

matter to them now

If young people matter to your future, start by mattering to theirs.

  1. Teach them something they care about.

  2. Give them something genuinely useful.

  3. Become part of their story before you need something from them.

trusted by

Logos of various organizations and universities, including Samsung, V&A, Adobe, Bloomberg, and Oxford University.

and more

  • Number 20 years enclosed in yellow ovals on a black background

    Depth + Range

    20 years translating between classroom, community, creative and commercial worlds.

  • A simple, stylized drawing of an eye with rays emanating from it.

    credible + creative

    Qualified teacher. Learning designer. Creative strategist.

  • Logo with a yellow oval outline and white text that reads "1 M+" inside.

    impact + scale

    1M+ young people engaged through work with organisations including Sky, LEGO, Samsung and Bloomberg.

Black & white photo of students building with bricks at a LEGO Build the CHange Youth Council event.
Black & white photo of the GirlHood creative traineeship participants at the D&AD New Blood Festival 2016.
Black & white photo of a post it note created during a brainstorm by participants on The GirlHood creative traineeship. It reads: Longevity Bitches!!!!
Black & white photo of two female students posing for a photo, having an arm wrestle, at the Women of the World Festival 2015 GirlHood takeover workshop.
Black & white photo of a mood board taken during The GirlHood Creative Traineeship. There are two post-it notes that read Ingenuity and Grit.
Black & white photo of a workshop participant raising her hand and smiling, collaged on top of a doodled background with patterned triangles.
Black & white photo of a group of girls posing for a photo being shot by a girl lying on the floor. They're smiling and having fun. Taken at the WOW Women of the World Festival GirlHood launch in 2015.
Black & white photo of 3 females working on a creative brief during The GirlHood Creative Traineeship at FCB Inferno. The screen reads: The world needs more interesting ways of appealing to Muslim consumers.
Black & white photo of a large group of girls posing with protest art they had made at the V&A during a GirlHood creative voice workshop.
Black & white photo of a girls hands sticking down images and tape onto her own piece of protest art.
A large group of female students pose for a photo outside a building having just taken part in a GirlHood creative workshop designing advertising campaigns promoting a menstruation equality charity.
Black & white photo of participants of The GirlHood Creative Traineeship, in a boardroom at FCB Inferno. They are smiling and standing behind their chairs.
Black & white photo of 3 participants from The GirlHood Creative traineeship who were hired as junior creatives by the agency. They are smiling next to the agency logo.
Black & white photo of Kati Russell and Natalie Rodden, co-founders of The GirlHood, peeking out from behind a drawing created by a workshop participant. The picture depicts a girl with big muscles and a slogan that reads Now that's what I call bicep
Black & white photo of an evaluation form from a participant of The GirlHood launch at WOW Women of the World Festival 2015. It reads I feel fearless!!
Black & white photo of two girls holding up two misogynistic ads which they have subverted using craft materials and gender positive language. Take during a workshop at the V&A.

Case Studies

*

Case Studies *

LEGO build the change x the day

We snuck LEGO bricks into lessons and nobody called security.

See Project

THE GIRLHOOD x fcb inferno

We replaced diversity buzzwords with actual opportunity. Revolutionary, we know.

See Project

SKY ARTS ACCESS ALL ARTS WEEK

We gave 6,000 primary teachers an extreme artistic makeover. No paintbrushes were harmed.

See Project

nice people saying nice things

“Nat brought a clear learning design mindset that helped us turn big, challenging topics into sessions that felt human, engaging and accessible. Her style is playful, thoughtful and rooted in purpose.”

Austin Desautels, Climarts

“Natalie is a natural ideas person and creator, but crucially, she knows how to turn strong ideas into compelling content that works in real classrooms.”

Michelle Jones-Walker, The Day

Ways to work with me

Thinking in loops means we can start wherever you are. Answer the questions below to see where we might begin.

Learning design loop: Gather, Notice, Find, Shape and Experiment, showing an iterative process rather than a linear one.

  • FIND THE THREAD

    I help you make sense of what matters, connect your ambition to your audience, and find the strongest direction.

    Gather → Notice → Find

  • FOLLOW THE THREAD

    I shape your brief into a useful, engaging learning experience, strategy or product designed for, with or by your audience.

    Find → Shape

  • TEST THE THREAD

    I help you test with your audience, understand what’s working and what isn’t, and improve the experience.

    Experiment → Gather → Notice → Shape

  • STAY IN THE LOOP

    I work alongside you as a strategic learning partner, bringing perspective, challenge and experienced judgement as the work develops.

    Across the loop

let's go

Got an ambition involving young people?

Let’s find your thread

book a call
an image of a piece of Natalie's artwork - an eye on hessian fabric done with a punch needle and yarn