Rachel graduated from Birmingham Conservatoire in 1994 with a BA(Hons) in music majoring in piano and oboe. She then went on to complete a MA in music therapy.
After qualifying as a teacher, she went on to teach in a number of secondary schools in York whilst also teaching piano and oboe privately. Rachel then joined the peripatetic music service in York as a woodwind specialist teaching oboe, flute, clarinet and sax and now teaches across the city and on a private basis. Rachel also teaches music theory privately and at York Music Centre.