International Health Humanities Network Membership

I have been a teacher of music for thirty years, having spent much of that time in leadership positions, including two headships and a role in Aberdeenshire Education Service with responsibility for School Improvement and Quality Assurance,  which involved, amongst other responsibilities, monitoring and supporting the work of the County Instrumental Music Service; I am now an educational consultant and private tutor of singing, violin and english language for a range of purposes, but before that was team leader for Language and Literacy at Plymouth University. My main aim is to enable people to reach their potential and overcome barriers to achievement such as anxiety and low self- esteem.

I have taken a range of diplomas in Counselling, Psychotherapy, Clinical Hypnotherapy, Mental Health and Social Work, Anatomy and Physiology and Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, all of which I am able to utilise in supporting my clients in the pursuit of their goals, whether those be musical, academic or personal. I also enjoy painting with acrylics and textures and have my own online gallery in which I exhibit my abstract artwork.

I have played the violin since I was eight years old and been a member of numerous orchestras, including a stint as the co-leader of Sheffield Symphony Orchestra and the leader of my own string quartet which regularly played for weddings and other special occasions. My passion for singing developed through my involvement in choral singing and my interest in opera during my time as a music student at Huddersfield Music College, where I was fortunate enough to receive lessons from David Lennox of Covent Garden (singing) and the late Herbert Whone (violin). My other interests include horse riding, rock climbing and kayaking.