Alan returned to Derby Cathedral in 2015, having previously been Lay Reader there in the 1990’s. In the intervening years he was an Associate Priest in the Melbourne Benefice of South Derbyshire. As Chaplain he supports the governance work of the Cathedral Chapter by advising and minuting its meetings.

Alan has a long-standing interest and involvement in education, having been a secondary school headteacher, a university honorary research fellow and an internationally recognised writer on education leadership and how school leaders may be sustained in its ethical, moral and spiritual dimensions. He is also a Churchill Fellow. Married to Jean, with two adult sons, they enjoy hill walking together.