My interest in food and nutrition encouraged me to follow a career in dietetics. Dietitians translate the science of nutrition into a language understood by consumers relating to everyday food. Over the past 30 years I have worked as a dietitian within a variety of health service and civil service settings.

Throughout my career I have developed an interest in food issues relating to public health nutrition. In 2007 I was delighted to be awarded a Churchill Fellowship which allowed me to travel to New Zealand for three months, to work alongside a variety of community food and nutrition projects within rural communities, especially marginalised groups. From this I gained vast experience on what contributes to successful food and nutrition programmes.

My current job is British Dietetic Association (BDA) Policy Officer for Northern Ireland. In this role I promote the dietetic profession and the work of BDA members in NI. I aim to inspire, motivate and support BDA members across NI to promote their roles and demonstrate the impact they have, particularly on the prevention, primary care and public health agendas.