AN educational consultant from St Neots has been made an honorary fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons – a fellowship rarely given to people from outside the medical profession. Gareth Holsgrove, 62, from St Neots Road, Eaton Ford, trains the examiner

AN educational consultant from St Neots has been made an honorary fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons - a fellowship rarely given to people from outside the medical profession.

Gareth Holsgrove, 62, from St Neots Road, Eaton Ford, trains the examiners who set and mark the exams, overseeing the standard (or pass mark) and measuring the appropriateness of the exam.

Mr Holsgrove, told The Hunts Post: "I got an honour that I didn't expect and that I am incredibly moved by. It came from people I have known for a long time and hold in high regard."

The former grammar school boy had wanted to become a doctor but because of family circumstances left school to become a lab technician.

However, he went on to university taking a degree and Phd in education and, after teaching deaf children, an MSc in audiology.

With a background in science, Mr Holsgrove later moved into medical education, where he was a senior lecturer and then head of the academic unit of medical and dental education at St Bartholomew's Hospital in London and the London School of Medicine and Dentistry.

He then became head of postgraduate educational services at the Royal College of Psychiatrists where he is still education adviser.

Mr Holsgrove was presented with his fellowship diploma at a ceremony at The Royal College of Surgeons on March 1, which he attended with his wife, Linda.

The citation for the award states: "[Gareth's] expertise and advice has been invaluable in the collaborative work between the two dental faculties of this college in producing a new, modern innovative assessment for today's young dentists".

As the current president of The Rotary Club of St Neots, St Mary's, Mr Holsgrove has named the Dreamdrops appeal for Hinchingbrooke Hospital as his charity for the year.