Fleur Elkerton - BA History (2019)
From medieval embroidery to digital storytelling at UK Parliament, this UCL History alum shows how a love of research and creativity can shape a career in heritage and public engagement.
Image credit: House of Commons
BA History 2016-2019
I graduated from UCL in 2019 with a BA in History, specialising in late medieval material culture. My dissertation explored ecclesiastical embroidery and its performative contexts in late medieval England, looking at visual storytelling, craft, and sensory experiences of devotion. It was awarded the Student Essay Prize by the Design History Society. I’m still grateful to the brilliant tutors I learnt from (including John Sabapathy, Sophie Page, Margot Finn and Patrick Lantschner) and for how the course nurtured my love of research, objects and ideas.
Before and during my studies, I worked as a theatre producer and designer, having trained with the National Youth Theatre. I was Head of Design for UCL Drama Society and a real highlight was when I helped reopen the Bloomsbury Theatre in 2018 with ‘Saint Joan’.
After UCL, I received a full scholarship to study an MA in History of Design and Material Culture at the V&A Museum and Royal College of Art. I spent a semester at Bard Graduate Center in New York, and during the pandemic co-founded Design in Quarantine, a global digital archive of design responses to lockdown. The platform was featured in the New York Times, Financial Times and at the London Design Biennale.
Since completing my MA in 2021, I’ve worked in creative communications across the public sector, with a focus on storytelling and accessibility. I’ve managed digital content and campaigns for UCL, David Parr House and the British Academy. Since 2022, I’ve worked at UK Parliament, first as a producer and then as Creative Lead for Social Media from 2023. I manage all content for the House of Commons and Parliament channels - from livestreams to same day image releases from the Chamber, no two days are the same. Highlights have included working on Lying in State, visits from President Zelenskyy and the 2024 General Election.
I’m also a board member of the Heritage Network, a national architectural heritage charity, where I founded our Youth Forum and support engagement and communications.
My time at UCL shaped my understanding of how creativity can support public understanding, trust and engagement. It also set me on the path to study design and material culture at a postgraduate level. Ultimately I’m always curious about how stories - whether stitched, staged or shared online - can help people feel more connected to the world around them, and studying history gave me the tools to explore this.