Alumni Members

How do you feel that your time at KES shaped you and your career? Were there any particular highlights you can recall from your time at KES?

My time at KES taught me a lot of organisational skills. As a boarder, students were encouraged to help and organiuse with my school activities. I was House Captain, School Prefect and achieved School Colours for supporting sport including as 1st XI Cricket scorer and athletics assistant. 
 

What was the most important learning point you took with you from your time at KES?

Work hard, play hard.
 

What was your most recent career role? 

I recently retired as British Touring Car Championship Technical Chief after 27 years in the role. I started that job in 1996, and prior to that I was working in the series as a scrutineer. 
 

Did you always know that you wanted to have a career in motorsport? How did you get started in the industry? 

I became interested in the sport as a schoolboy during the 1960s, when I went to the races at Snetterton with the family doctor, who was on duty.

GRD [a successful Formula 3 constructor of the early 1970s] were in Griston and I did a little bit with them at weekends. Typical schoolboy – you roll up on your bike and they give you a job.

I eventually left Leeds University with a degree that suddenly had no jobs, as the steel industry was in decline, so went to British Leyland Truck & Bus Division on a graduate apprentice scheme for 18 months and then went into factory management.

Motorsport was always an interest and I went from running cars to Lotus F1 to scrutineering. 
 

What would your advice be to young adults looking to pursue a similar career path to yours?

In reality to get where I got is rare. There are very few paid roles and many are weekend jobs. A good parallel is football - referees start in amateur games and if very good, they get to the Premiership and are paid as a job.
 

What made you become a foundation trustee and member of the Old Lennensian Association?

I joined the Old Lennensian Association when I left school and rejoined when it was reformed. I got persuaded to join the committee, which is a good opportunity to catch up with fellow pupils who you’ve not seen for many years. As treasurer for the Old Lennensian Association, I got co-opted onto the school's Trustees in the same role.