Infographics

Presenting data visually can help ‘tell a story’ or make data more insightful and understandable.

This can often be in the form of a chart or graph, accompanied by brief text to give users information quickly and easily. 

Getting started 

See Flickr or Pinterest for different styles of infographics.

Look at the useful reading section below.

Suggested tools 

Canva

A graphic design tool website aimed at all users with varying degrees of experience in creating infographics.

Is simple to use with lots of features such as drag and drop.

Cost

There are various packages available. The free package gives limited storage and the ability to upload your own images.

Find out more at Canva.

Examples 

• Natasha Craigs, Mid Yorks NHS, have created this useful guide with some examples A Guide to Canva
• Tracy Owen, North West Boroughs Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust KLS survey 2018 infographic
• HEE Knowledge and Library Leads Annual Statistics Returns Infographics

Training and support

• Canva contains a ‘Learn’ section which even drills down to specialist support for the type of user (student, teacher)
• There are also general design tutorials

Articles

• De Ford, Katherin et al, (2017) Canva: a practical accessible design tool. Marketing Libraries Journal

Blog posts

• University of Sussex –Technology Enhanced Learning Blog (2016) Introducing Canva: an accessible graphic design tool
• The Inspired Librarian (2016) Canva: An amazing time saving, free Poster/Infographic creator
• The Mid Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust Staff Library (2016) Using Canva because it’s free and useful

Microsoft Office/Adobe

• The Microsoft Office Suite (PowerPoint/Publisher/Excel/Word) has a range of software which can be used in the creation and for the promotion of infographics
• The Adobe package (Adobe Photoshop/Illustrator) tends to be aimed at those with some experience in creating images and documents/files
• One example of how you can use Microsoft Publisher is using Publisher and then converting it via a free PDF creator
• Cost: MS Office Suite is freely available on NHS networks
• Adobe access can vary by teams and trusts. Please see your IT department for further advice

Examples

• University of Huddersfield Library – using Adobe Illustrator University of Huddersfield
• Blended approach: Karen Holmden, Surrey and Sussex Healthcare used canva and free digital photos to source the images and graphics, and then Microsoft Publisher and PowerPoint to create it
• SaSH infographic
• Blended Approach: Paul Edwards, Cheshire and Wirral Partnership Knowledge and Library Service used a combination of Microsoft Publisher and Pixabay
• Infographic – Cheshire and Wirral Partnership NHS Foundation Trust

Training and support:

• Microsoft Office Support
• Adobe Support

Other resources

• These are from various sectors and include UK and international examples
• Libraries Matter: 18 fantastic library infographics and charts

Piktochart

• Piktochart is a web-based infographic application which allows users with little experience as graphic designers to easily create infographics and visuals using themed templates
• Cost: There are various packages available. You can even sign up for a free trial
• The free package gives you unlimited storage and the ability to download your piktocharts as JPG or PNG images

• See an example created by Sian Aynsley, Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust

To submit an example of an infographic you have created, contact Heather Steele.

Contact KfH England for any of the examples in an accessible format.

Useful reading