As a child what did you want to be when you grew up?

I wanted to be a ballet dancer or theatre director.

How did you get involved in education?

I started out as a schools worker with Youth for Christ. Over the years I became increasingly involved in one particular school who invited me to become their extended school coordinator and performing arts tutor.

What was your best memory of primary school?

Sports day with cheap choc ices.

What is your worst memory of secondary school?

I loved secondary school and had very few bad memories. The worst was probably the things people said when I started to lose my hair at around 16.

How do we develop schools that are the best possible places for a child's development?

Time is a key factor along with the right people. Schools that have an enlightened view of education are now employing youth workers or pastoral support workers as part of the staff and giving students time off curriculum to spend time with adults who can help in areas not normally covered by subject teachers. This coupled with what we are now seeing in the extended school programme can only help build self esteem, resilience and confidence.

Who has been the biggest influence in your work?

My head teacher. He has such a sense of compassion for both his students and his community. He is also very open to involvement from community groups such as Youth for Christ as long as he can see that their motive is the well-being of the child and their family.

What Christian story or biblical text motivates you in your work?

The story of the prodigal son remains at the heart of all I do. Not a day goes by without some aspect of the story resonating with some situation in my day. The government agenda - Every Child Matters - was born from this story and its image of the father. I also love the story of blind Bartimaeus and the way in which Jesus hears the single voice in the crowd and meets his needs. That kind of attention to an individual is key.

What one piece of advice would you give someone starting out in education?

When I started at the end of every day I would ask - what do these children feel about me? That was such a bad attitude. It meant that I was seeking my own self worth in their responses. As time went by I changed and the question became - what do I feel about them? This was better and altered my approach to discipline and relationships. Now I ask, what does God feel about them and discovering that gives me the foundation for everything I should do.

Who would you like to share a taxi with?

Doctor Who.

What is the big issue you are facing in education?

There are lots - but at the moment homophobic bullying is causing a great deal of discussion and needing a great deal of wisdom.

What's your greatest fear and your greatest hope?

My fear is that the church will turn its back on schools and retreat into a ghetto.
My hope is that the church will find a new place at the heart of school as school finds itself at the heart of community.

What do you invest in the next generation?

In my last 23 years I have determined to give young people a sense of their own value, a sense of justice and a knowledge that there is a God. If a child takes this on board then tomorrow looks pretty rosy.

Martin Luther King Jr had a dream for society. What is yours?

Martin Luther King said others first always. Jesus lived that. I wish it were true now in all our lives.

What is the main hindrance to living the dream?

Sin and selfishness.

Tell us your most hilarious faux pas.

I meet so many people I often forget names. But I also think I know people when I see them and go and chat to them hoping their name will come to me. I once saw a well known pop star in a car park but didn't know they were a pop star at the time. I thought they were one of my former youth group young people grown up - so I started talking and asking what they were doing now and telling them what a pain they had been etc. part way through I realised who this was and beat a hasty retreat.

What is the most important lesson life has taught you?

That love covers a multitude of sins.

When are you the happiest?

With my family.

How can we increase wellbeing in education in the next 10 years?

By giving young people time and space.