Walter Worboys

Who was Walter Worboys?

Sir Walter John Worboys, was an Australian-born British businessman.

He was born in Perth, WA on 22 February 1900 and educated at Scotch College and the University of Western Australia. Elected a Rhodes Scholar in 1922, he gained his D.Phil. after a further period of study at Lincoln College, Oxford. His first job was as a Research Chemist at Brunner Mond & Co. From here he moved to ICI eventually reaching the rank of Director.

In 1947 he joined the Council of Industrial Design, a body set up by the Board of Trade in 1944. He was chairman of the Council from 1953 until 1960, during which time he set up the Design Centre, a permanent exhibition of the Council’s work. The establishment of the Design Centre proved to be a turning point in the history of the Council which, until that time had attracted more critics than friends.

In 1961 he was appointed to chair a committee to bring in a new era of modern road signage. The committee reported in 1963, advocating a total overhaul of the style of British road signs, a style that has lasted until the present day.