vicky gerrard

i am vicky gerrard

I help organisations design more inclusive, responsive, and sustainable participatory practices. At the heart of my work is a belief that caring relationships are shaped through material dialogue — the shared, everyday acts of creating and reconfiguring the spaces, tools, and systems we use to support one another.

Over the past 13 years, I’ve worked across Singapore, Indonesia, and the UK — from co-founding O-Lab, a participatory design lab at Singapore University of Technology and Design, to supporting grassroots and community-led initiatives in London. I’ve collaborated with educators, charities, and activists to explore how design can support more equitable forms of organising and belonging.

In 2020, I began a PhD at Loughborough University London, where I developed a practice-led framework for understanding how participation can be reclaimed when care breaks down — including in contexts such as refugee support and political imprisonment. Since completing my doctorate, I’ve returned to hands-on work, helping organisations translate this thinking into practice.

I’m currently working with Southwark Day Centre for Asylum Seekers, and I co-lead The Fieldwork Project in Crystal Palace — a space for experimenting with alternative ways of relating, organising, and supporting one another.

If you’re looking to bring more care, depth, and sustainability to your participatory work, I’d love to hear from you.