Steven graduated with a first class BA (Hons) degree in Sport and Leisure Management from the University of Salford before moving to the University of Chester in order to study for an MSc in the Sociology of Sport and Exercise. After graduating with an MSc with distinction, Steven went on to complete a PhD in the sociology of sport, also at the University of Chester. His doctoral thesis examined the long-term emergence and development of swimming as a modern competitive sport in the period c.1595-1908. Steven worked as a visiting lecturer at the University of Chester whilst completing his PhD and also undertook a PG Cert Learning and Teaching in Higher Education, gaining recognition as a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA) in 2011. Steven joined York St John University as a lecturer in 2014 and is currently teaching on various modules relating to the sociology of sport, sport management and development, qualitative and quantitative research methods in the social sciences, and the use and importance of evidence-based practice in sport.