Helen Darnell MA, FHEA

Senior Lecturer
Interior Design

After a 10+ year career as an Interior Designer in commercial practice, where I specialised in workplace design as well as working on retail and hospitality schemes, I now teach on the BA(Hons) Interior Design programme at the Manchester School of Art.

My passion is for design detailing – junctions, furniture, fixings, materials – and how these practical elements can inform and enhance the poetics of the design concept, narrative, and human experience of space.

I am the programme lead for Graduate Outcomes, Placements and Overseas Study. Drawing on my industry knowledge and network, I help to create and promote accessible opportunities for all our students, through fostering relationships with practicing Designers and Industry Professionals.

I am an Innovation Scholar, working collaboratively with Claire Norcross on a Professional Pathway project that aims to support students across the Department of Design, especially those with lower social capital, to enrich their University experience, boost their confidence and employability, and help them pave their own creative career pathway.