Sheffield-born, Denise Bates read Modern History at St Anne's College, Oxford, specializing in the 1815-1914 period, before moving across the Pennines to Cheshire. A Chartered Accountant by profession, her interests now relate to work (paid and unpaid) in the voluntary sector, in support of local communities; and also writing and motherhood. Denise has written articles on a variety of topics for national magazines. A passion for family history has led to the discovery of her maternal mining ancestry in the Barnsley area; whilst on her father's side she can trace her origins to the cutlers and 'little mesters' of the Sheffield steel industry.