Staff Profile

About me

I am Deputy School manager in the multidisciplinary School of Arts & Cultures within the faculty of Humanities and Social Science. The School provides a bridge between academic research and teaching, and the wider world of culture, heritage and the arts. The School is multi-faceted and varied, having subject areas covering Fine Art, Music and Media, Culture, Heritage, based over several sites across campus.

I started my Career in the Finance Office at Newcastle University in 1990, during which time the University supported me through firstly my Accounting Technician qualification, and secondly my ACCA qualification. Further to five years continuous ACCA membership and compliance with their CPD scheme, I have graduated to Fellowship status (FCCA) demonstrating extensive experience and long-term commitment to professionalism. I have held a series of dynamic roles across different parts of the Finance Office and in 3 very different Schools (SACS, Biology & Civil Engineering & Geosciences).

Skills and Expertise

In SACS, I currently lead and develop the school’s administrative professional services, with senior level responsibility for the development of an environment to enable high quality teaching and research. This includes responsibility for the development and implementation of a framework to support strategic planning, implementation and monitoring within the School and collation, analysis and interpretation of appropriate management information.

I manage a diverse range of 16 staff, to ensure the delivery of a professional support service for the School, carrying out and supporting them with all aspects of their development.

My role is varied and diverse, requiring an overview of the workings of the School as a whole including estates liaison, purchasing, finance, research support, planning, teaching and learning, and offer school executive support. I support the delivery of the School’s strategic plan, workload model and budgeting requirements.

I hold the remit for Marketing and recruitment, Internationalisation, Projects, Engagement and employability, Health and Safety, Budgets, Planning, Management and strategic analysis of management information.

As Deputy School manager in the School of Biology, I held a pivotal role on the Exec Board, advising and contributing to the resource, planning and managing the budget to ensure maximum value was delivered.

I redistributed the school’s financial management, creating an operating environment that was secure, in-budget and financially viable. I organised a coherent management structure for this complex school, which was spread over several sites and outstations based off campus.

Schools & Education

1999 - 2003           ASSOC of CHARTERED CERTIFIED ACCOUNTANTS (FCCA)

1992 - 1995            ASSOCIATION of ACCOUNTING TECHNICIANS (AAT)

Jan- Mar 2018        Institute of Occupational Safety & Health (IOSH) Managing Safely

Interests and Hobbies

I am an enthusiastic athlete, and a keen supporter of sport for children. I am a founder member, original treasurer, and an active member on the steering group of Tyne Bridge Harriers, a running club that was established in January 2011. TBH has a membership of around 470 each year. I am currently focussing on the junior section, planning and organising training programmes with a view to encouraging participation in competition.

I firstly achieved my athletics coaching qualification (requiring me to be DBS checked), then set the junior section up from scratch, having now developed an infra structure to allow it to grow. I regularly close teams / have representation at local races. I often represent the club at regional and national fixtures myself, have run over 20 marathons and several Ultra Marathons.