After completing my first degree, BSc (Hons) Textile Chemistry at the University of Leeds, I began my industrial career as a textile technologist. Over 18 years, I worked with a diverse range of global companies such as Ford and Volkswagen (developing car airbag fabrics), Disney and Warner Bros (branded childrenswear nightwear), Umbro (sports and casualwear) and Marks and Spencer (ladies tailoring and denim). I worked internationally in East Asia and Europe, relocating to North Africa as part of a management team to run a large garment manufacturing unit and industrial laundry.

On returning to the UK, I began to share my extensive global textile knowledge and was appointed Senior Lecturer in Textile Technology at MMU in 2011,  joining the University of Manchester in 2022 continuing to establish my role as academic practitioner and researcher. My interest in pedagogical aproaches has been fuelled by my experience in developing and delivering a variety of units across under and post graduate levels. Gaining a deeper understanding of academic curriculum development and quality standards has enabled me to lead the writing, review and approval of new undergraduate programmes, and support programme reviews at postgraduate level, contributing to institution wide panel evaluation and validation events.

My academic practice has been supported by the awards of PGCAP and FHEA in 2013, and SFHEA in 2021.

I am an advocate for future generations joining the exciting world of textiles and am a STEM ambassador, participating in event at local and national level to promote the subject to school pupils.

I am a strong believer in the links between academic practice, industry and subject specific research. I have worked to maintain my industrial links by working alongside business development teams and delivering short courses for industry professionals. This has allowed me to be involved with current practice in the sector - and bring this to the classroom to inform my teaching and impact the learning of my students. 

My research interests span textile technologies from wearable electronics to microbiology. My research group studies the development of sustainable materials for the textile and apparel industry. Specifically I explore the use of plant and microbial sources in the creation, colouration and finishing of textile products, and the impact of these on the environment. I am also interested in the public's perception and adoption of such materials and have hosted several public engagement events incorporating citizen science data collection. The findings from these events have informed both experimental design in textile research development and curriculum design in HE.

I am a Fellow (FIMMM) of the Institute for Materials, Minerals and Mining (IOM3) and a chartered fellow (CTextFTI) of The Textile Institute, for whom I am a council member and trustee and currently serving as Honorary Secretary. I am academic representative on behalf of the University of Manchester for the British Textile Machinery Association (BTMA). I am also the lead academic for the industry wide WRAP initiative, Textiles 2030, exploring and implementing the necessary changes required by the industry to combat its impact on climate change. 

My research is interdisciplinary and I beleiver the future of the textile and fashion industry lies in collaborations between disciplines, academia and industry. My vision is to create stronger links across higher education and the global textile industry, creating a research group driven by a sector leading facility in sustainable textile technology as part of the wider University of Manchester fashion innovation resource.