Hayley Fern is a Coalville-based artist working from her home studio in Hugglescote. After gaining a 1st class degree in Multi-media Textiles she went on to work in costume and book illustration before completing a Master's in Community and Participatory arts and running countless art projects in Leicestershire. She now teaches art in a secondary school in Quorn. A stroke at the age of 48 meant taking time out to recover but it also allowed her to rediscover painting as a means of creative expression and healing. Hayley now paints almost every day.