Portia Foster

I qualified as a beauty therapist in 1991 before working in the industry for 9 years, including on board luxury cruise liners.

After spending a period of time working as a beauty therapist in Sydney, Australia I returned to work in Birmingham and the surrounding areas.

I achieved my Certificate in Education in 2004 but had worked full-time in further education colleges since 2000, across several positions including team leader and hair and beauty diploma coordinator.

I joined University College Birmingham in October 2014 as a full-time lecturer, where I work as a mentor for the combined hair and beauty course, and teach across a range of courses in further education and higher education within the department.