Getting to know… Hazel Lobo

Posted on: 2021-02-23

Our programme leaders play a huge role in our students’ lives, coordinating the courses our students study on and being the point of contact for any queries arising from their studies.

One of the regular features we do on social media is ask our programme leaders five questions as a means of finding out more about them and showcasing the people behind the programmes. Hazel Lobo, our Certificate of Higher Education Built Environment Studies programme leader, was the latest to answer five questions and provided more than we could squeeze into a social post so here are Hazel’s full answers to each of the questions…

Where were you born?

I was born in Oxford, the oldest of (eventually) six children. I lived on the outskirts of the city for all of my childhood and have lived in Oxfordshire for the majority of my life.

What is your favourite colour?

About the only thing I have a firm and consistent favourite in is colour. Purple is my favourite colour – in all its shades from purple-tinged cups of early crocus poking through the snow in late winter, changing places with the gentle mauve of Lilac blooms in spring, through the deeper blue/purple shades of lavender in summer, to the red/purple of heather in autumn/early winter. Purple also features in many of my loved gemstones – opal and amethyst being close to the top at any given time.

What is your favourite film?

As suggested above, I don’t really have ‘favourites’ in other areas of my life. I enjoy films, other than violent ones, and will happily watch musicals, cartoons, rom-coms, historical period pieces, biographical, science fiction/fantasy, murder mystery (but not gratuitous violence) or other genres as the moment takes me.

Who is your hero/heroine?

I don’t have single heroes/heroines. I am inspired by many people, lots of them not in the public eye and therefore names would be meaningless to others. I suppose I am inspired by those who strive to be the best they can be without losing sight of the fact that they are one amongst many.

What is the best piece of advice you’ve ever received?

Trust – in God and in yourself. Know that, whilst you are not perfect, so long as you are being the very best ‘you’ that you can be at any given moment in time, then no-one has the right to ask more of you. My grandfather told me this when I was quite young. Sometimes, the best ‘me’ isn’t very good, but it is the best I can manage in the situation I am in at that moment. Accepting that about myself helps me to be more accepting of others. The only reasonable expectation we can have of ourselves and others is that we are doing our best.

Thanks, Hazel! To find out more about Hazel’s programme, head to the Certificate of Higher Education Built Environment Studies webpage.