I took a circuitous route to academia, having worked teaching English as a foreign language, in advertising, where I found myself mentoring other copy writers, and then in community engagement, where I helped others to express their needs and opinions. Eventually the penny dropped, and I realised that the power of language was my driving passion. Thus enlightened, I set up and ran the Writing Centre at Liverpool Hope University, winning a number of learning and teaching awards, before joining the Creative Writing team at Salford. Since arriving at Salford in 2005 I have gained my Ph.D., become a prize-winning poet and prose writer, and in 2023 received my Chair in Life Writing.
As a writer, I focus on the facilitation of other voices, as well as my own. I am currently developing a radical writing project and I have founded and worked with our communities in Salford on place based projects that you can read more about on our communities page.
I have also been working on a collaborative novel with Salford community group Loaves and Fishes
I am the director of postgraduate studies in the School of Arts and Media at the University of Salford.
Research Interests
Radical Writing; collaborative writing; community history; place based writing; life writing; biography.
Modules I teach
Biography; Final Portfolio; Experimental Practice; Writing Workshop