Ben Terrett

Ben Terrett CBE is the CEO and one of four founders of Public Digital, a global consultancy that works with governments, philanthropic organisations and FTSE 100 companies to build modern, user-centred digital organisations. Born in 1975, Terrett is widely recognised as one of the UK's leading digital design strategists, with a career spanning both public sector transformation and private consultancy.

Terrett played a key role as Director of Design at the Government Digital Service from 2011 to 2015, leading the design team that launched GOV.UK. His groundbreaking work redesigned nearly 2,000 government websites to be simpler, clearer and faster, and the Government Digital Service published ten design principles that are still referenced as best-in-class principles for digital design. Terrett co-authored the UK Government Design Principles, which Tim O'Reilly called "the most significant since Apple's". He has been inducted into the Design Week Hall of Fame and has won various industry awards including the Design Museum's Design of the Year and a D&AD Black Pencil.

Career history

• CEO and Founder, Public Digital (current)
• Chair of Art UK (since 2026)
• Group Design Director, The Co-op
• Director of Design, Government Digital Service (2011–2015)
• Design Director, Wieden + Kennedy

Terrett's accolades include being made a Royal Designer for Industry (RDI) in 2018, the first elected for Service Design, and receiving an Honorary Doctorate in Design from Central Saint Martins in 2024. In June 2025, he was appointed a CBE in the King's Birthday Honours for services to design and creative education. He also serves as Chair of Art UK, the award-winning art education charity and online home for every public collection of art in the UK.

What Ben Terrett could bring to his CEO role at Public Digital: Terrett brings unparalleled expertise in large-scale digital transformation, having successfully consolidated government digital services while establishing enduring design principles now used globally. His track record of leading multidisciplinary teams through complex organisational change, combined with his advisory roles across government, education and cultural institutions, positions him to scale Public Digital's impact in helping governments and large organisations navigate digital adaptation in an increasingly complex policy environment.