Previously she was Deputy Head of the Embassy in Sarajevo (2018-2021), and before that was in Canberra, Australia, where she headed up the Foreign and Security Policy Team at the British High Commission, and previously was Head of the External Team in the Iran Department of the  Foreign and Commonwealth Office. Prior to joining the FCDO, Ruth worked in four other government departments including as a Senior Analyst in the Prime Minister’s Delivery Unit of the Cabinet Office. There she was responsible for developing innovative methods to improve delivery across a number of policy areas such as immigration, crime and transport.  Prior to joining the Civil Service, Ruth undertook her PhD research at the University of Sheffield.