John is a Higher Education Adviser with the British Council, based in Manchester. John has more than 25 years' experience in the Higher Education sector, and specialises in issues such as quality assurance, collaborative partnerships, research co-operation and internationalisation.

After graduating with a BSc in Industrial Design, from Edinburgh’s Napier University, John gained several years' experience as a practising designer, before joining the University of Central England, where in 1996 he gained his PhD in Design Management.

In 2000 he was appointed as Head of the Department of Fashion, Textiles and Three Dimensional Design at UCE, before moving to Hong Kong as the Head of Department of Design at the Hong Kong Design Institute, where he was instrumental in delivering UK undergraduate programmes with UK partner universities.

John works with both the UK HE sector and Ministries of Higher Education overseas to promote dialogue and partnership between higher education stakeholders. He is a regular contributor at international conferences.