Tony, now a retired National Leader of Education and Head Teacher, graduated from the University of Manchester and subsequently achieved a PGCE from the University of Leeds and MA from the University of Kent. After working in schools in Liverpool and in Bexley London Borough, in January 2000 Tony was appointed as Head Teacher of The Becket School in Nottingham and led the school to its highest Ofsted rating of ‘Outstanding’. He worked with Browne Jacobson lawyers and the DfE to develop the Multiple Academy Trust model and, under his leadership, The Becket School with its feeder primaries formed the first Catholic MAT in the country.

Tony has continued to be involved in a variety of educational projects, particularly with regard to school improvement and academy conversion. He has worked as an Educational Consultant with Browne Jacobson, in conjunction with the DfE, and he has also been an external education consultant, especially with the Diocese of Nottingham. He has also regularly presented to international educators in Ontario, Canada, and he has had papers published on approaches to learning, on school collaboration and on the connections between creativity, wellbeing and learning.