Our people

Kayla thrives on helping others achieve greatness! She spends much of her time coordinating the charity’s interactions with schools, teachers and teams – the people we’re here to serve. From engaging and on-boarding new organisations to supporting existing – Kayla ensures their journey to impact is a positive one.

Leah is then engine of our comms function. Having joined the charity initially as a marketing intern in early 2023 she smashed it so much we just had to find a way to get her to stay! Working as Patrice’s sidekick, she strives to raise awareness, grow our social footprint and bring the brand’s tone of voice to life one post at a time. Prior to joining FIRST UK, Leah worked in all things retail and hospitality whilst undertaking her Marketing and Management degree in London. She uses her extensive knowledge of consumers to produce and deliver effective comms that engages a mass audience and supports a clear customer journey. In her free time, you can find Leah rewatching sitcom ‘Friends’, walking her fur baby and eating her body weight in Hobnobs.

Amy is our resident matchmaker. As Programme Manager (Partnerships) she’s focused on finding the right friends to collaborate with in order to amplify impact for the young people we serve. Amy works with corporate partners to maximise effective employee engagement, whether that’s regular mentoring, ad hoc volunteering opportunities through to leadership and team building days. Prior to joining us at FIRST UK, she used her relationship-building and analysis skills to execute events at firms in Vancouver and Toronto. With a shift in focus, she’s now working to identify opportunities for leveraging income, people, and resources to achieve our mission sooner. Since it’s always easier to make friends with food, Amy’s experience as a trained pastry chef will be a critical on the job asset.

Ed’s ideas (not always good ones), agility and boundless energy drive the charity forward at pace. Frustrated by standing still he is constantly asking ‘will it make the boat go faster’ – no one really understands why (rumour suggests it’s a book he got one Christmas and hasn’t actually read but cites when out of ideas). Ed describes the mission as ‘making the charity go out of business’ – a world where every young person is equipped with the technical knowledge and life skills to own their futures. In the meantime, he’s focused on defining the pathway to impact and securing sustainable investment and critical friendships to get there fast. Previously Ed led innovation at Cancer Research UK devising award-winning fundraising products, disrupting funding models and driving strategic growth. He also spent several years globe-trotting whilst helping build an adventure tour operator into a sector-leading SME. His passions include his partner Katherine, their two young boys Zeb and Oz, travel, and anything to do with the water, outdoors or food.

Patrice owns all things impact, brand, comms and marketing in her role as the Head of Impact & Engagement here at FIRST UK. Operating across all channels and events, she builds a narrative that resonates with our audiences, making sure that everyone feels part of an epic experience. A Graphic and Media Designer from the University of the Arts London, Patrice honed her craft delivering consumer marketing campaigns and games with digital and creative agencies. While leading comms programmes at Sir Tim Berners-Lee’s Open Data Institute, she developed influencer strategies for public sector agencies. When she’s not working, you can find her binge-watching documentaries, hiking, dad dancing, rallying causes for diversity and inclusion, or presenting to young people and grown ups about opportunities in STEM.

Vikrant’s passion for STEM trace back to his time as an undergraduate studying engineering at the Indian Institute of Technology. The technical knowledge, relationships and life-skills he developed at the IIT served him well as a young entrepreneur in the dot com boom of early 2000’s. Recognising the impact technology and a technical education had on his own journey, he’s now determined to ensure every young person can unlock opportunities through STEM – and he’s established FIRST® UK to do just that.