Spotlight on... Niccola Hutchinson-Pascal

What is your role and what does it involve?

My role is with Co-Production Collective, a co-production community where everyone is welcome. Whatever our identity and experience, we work together in equal partnership to create better outcomes for everyone. Researchers get involved as do members of the public, practitioners, and students – to mention a few. Check out the Co-Production Collective website for resources to support you in co-producing research.

Co-Production Collective is part of the Engagement Team, which sits within the department of UCL Culture. 

How long have you been at UCL and what was your previous role?

I have been at UCL for three and a half years. Prior to joining UCL, I was at Sport England, an arms-length body of government responsible for growing and developing grassroots sport and getting more people active across England. I worked on various projects including innovation work linked to the famous This Girl Can campaign.

What working achievement or initiative are you most proud of?

Our co-produced website. It was developed by our community (and we mean this in the widest sense!). The same community that has been co-producing the Collective from scratch for the last four years. Together with Big Lemon, a great web design company, we worked on it for about six months – starting from scratch and all during COVID-19 times, and so all of the work was done remotely.

Tell us about a project you are working on now which is top of your to-do list?

Public Engagement: Skills and Practice Training programme 2020/21 is at the top of my to do list at the moment! I am part of the organising team for this programme and so we have been working for the last few months to organise speakers, develop content and advertise the programme. There are all sorts of interactive sessions available which offer a wide variety of opportunities to explore different aspects of public engagement, from its role in the impact narrative to how we can embed it within undergraduate courses at UCL. 

Visit the Public Engagement: Skills and Practice Training webpage to find out more about the training available and to book your place. The sessions are for anyone at UCL who self-identifies as a researcher and/or wants to embed public engagement into their work (professional services, academic staff and postgraduate research students are all welcome).

What is your favourite album, film and novel?

Album is anything Alicia Keys, she is great! Film is definitely Dirty Dancing. I have a young child so not much chance of reading books at the mo.

What is your favourite joke (pre-watershed)?

I’m rubbish at remembering jokes, sorry! But my favourite comedian is Romesh Ranganathan so probably one of his jokes!

Who would be your dream dinner guests?

Right now, dream dinner guests would be so many of my friends and family that I haven’t seen face-to-face for the last year or so!

What advice would you give your younger self?

Don’t worry so much, things work themselves out one way or another.

What would it surprise people to know about you?

I play a sport called Korfball… many people don’t know this about me and also have no clue what it is… it is also known as Dutch basketball and is a mixed sport that is basically somewhere between netball and basketball.

What is your favourite place?

Yorkshire! A great county with bags of amazing countryside and where I grew up.