Judith McClure was born in northern England, the daughter of a policeman, and educated at the local primary and grammar schools. She studied at the College of Law in London before reading History at the University of Oxford, where she went on to research and teach for six years. She entered the teaching profession in 1981 and was successively a teacher, Head of Department and Assistant Head, before taking over as Headteacher of The Royal School, Bath in 1987. She became Headteacher of St. George’s School, Edinburgh, in 1994. She is a Member of the Court of Heriot-Watt University and of Scottish Executive Educational Department advisory groups on Continuing Professional Development and on Leadership and she is Chairman of the Management Committee of the Scottish Council of Independent Schools. She is Convener of SELMAS, the Scottish Educational Leadership, Management and Administration Society, and of SCEN, the Scotland-China Educational Network.
