Professor Anthony Forster

Biography

Professor Anthony Forster is the sixth Vice-Chancellor of the University of Essex, and he took up his post in 2012. Anthony is a political scientist and his most recent work focussed on the duty of care owed by the state and society to service personnel. Anthony has published 11 books and nearly 50 articles and chapters. He is an elected Academician of the Academy of the Social Sciences (2009). Between 1999 and 2002 Anthony was the Special Advisor to the House of Lords Select Committee on the European Union Common Foreign and Security Policy. Following a first degree in Politics from the University of Hull and a commission in the Army, Anthony read for an MPhil and a DPhil in European Politics at the University of Oxford. He held posts first at the University of Nottingham and then at King's College London. In 2002, Anthony joined the University of Bristol as Professor of Politics and International Relations and was Head of the Department of Politics from 2004 to 2006. He then moved to Durham University to take up the post of PVC Faculty of Social Sciences and Health before becoming Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Education) in 2008 and Deputy Vice-Chancellor in 2011. Anthony is equally committed to excellence in research and education. He completed a Postgraduate Certificate in Academic Practice and has been a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy since 2007. Anthony has been a Board Member of the Higher Education Academy, the Equality Challenge Unit and the Leadership Foundation in Higher Education. His public service commitments include chairing the independent government review of the Defence Advisory Notice (D Notice) System, a voluntary system established to limit the inadvertent media disclosure of information where release would pose a risk to life or to national security (2014-15). Between 2012-2017, he was a Board member and trustee of the Blue Cross charity which provides nationwide support for pet owners who cannot afford private veterinary treatment and helps to find homes for unwanted animals.