Service design
Service Design
Designing services that work for real people — grounded in research, shaped by users, and built to deliver measurable outcomes
Mortar's Service Design practice helps public sector organisations and social enterprises transform the way they deliver services. We combine deep user research, co-design methods, and evidence-based practice to create services that are accessible, equitable, and genuinely effective. We work alongside your teams to understand the people you serve, uncover what is and isn't working, and design solutions that are built to last.
How it Works
We approach service design as an iterative, collaborative process. Rather than delivering a static blueprint, we embed ourselves in your organisation, working with frontline staff, service users, and stakeholders to surface the real challenges and co-design solutions that reflect the needs of everyone involved.
- Discovery and research: Deep-dive into your service landscape through interviews, observation, and data analysis to understand user needs and system constraints.
- Journey mapping: Visualise the end-to-end experience of your users — identifying pain points, gaps, and moments that matter.
- Co-design and prototyping: Run collaborative workshops to generate ideas, test concepts, and iterate quickly with real users.
- Service blueprinting: Map the front-stage and back-stage processes to align people, technology, and policy around a coherent service model.
Key Features
Our Service Design solution provides the methods, tools, and expertise to take your service from problem to working solution.
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User Research and Insight We conduct qualitative and quantitative research with the people who use and deliver your services. Interviews, ethnographic observation, and data analysis combine to build a rich picture of need, behaviour, and context.
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Journey Mapping We map the full user journey — from first point of contact to resolution — surfacing friction, duplication, and inequity. These maps become powerful tools for aligning teams and prioritising change.
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Co-design Workshops We facilitate structured workshops that bring together service users, frontline staff, and commissioners to generate and evaluate ideas. Our workshops are inclusive by design, ensuring diverse voices shape the outcome.
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Prototyping and Testing We build low and high-fidelity prototypes to test assumptions quickly. By putting ideas in front of users early, we reduce the risk of building the wrong thing and accelerate the path to a working solution.
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Service Blueprints and Design Documentation We produce clear, actionable service blueprints that align policy, people, and process. These documents give teams a shared reference point for implementation and continuous improvement.
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Implementation Support Service design doesn't end at delivery. We support your teams through the transition to a new model of service — providing change management guidance, training, and ongoing review.
Case Study Highlight
Mortar worked with Cheshire East Council to redesign the early intervention pathway for children at risk of school exclusion. By embedding user research and co-design into the process, we helped the council move from a reactive model to a proactive, community-led service that reduced exclusions and improved outcomes for young people. Read more
Why It Matters
Too many public services are designed around organisational convenience rather than user need. The result is services that are hard to navigate, deliver inconsistent outcomes, and fail the people who need them most. Service Design addresses this by putting users at the centre — not as an afterthought, but as the starting point for every decision.
Good service design also makes economic sense. By identifying and eliminating inefficiency, duplication, and failure demand early, organisations can reduce operational costs while improving outcomes. Our work consistently demonstrates that investing in design at the front end pays dividends at every stage of delivery.
Get in Touch
If your organisation is ready to move beyond patchwork fixes and rethink how your services work from the ground up, we would love to hear from you. Get in touch to discuss how our Service Design practice can help you build services that truly work for the people who need them.