Martin Collins
Emeritus Professor Martin Collins PhD, MSc, DO, FRES, FLS, FRSM
Freeman of the City of London
Emeritus Professor Martin Collins PhD, MSc, DO, FRES, FLS, FRSM is a Freeman of the City of London. He studied at the University of Reading, graduating in 1967 with a First Class Honours Degree in Zoology, and went on to complete a PhD by research on soil ecology in 1971. He continued his academic development at King’s College, University of London, where he obtained an MSc in Human and Applied Physiology in 1987, and subsequently trained at the British School of Osteopathy, receiving his Diploma in Osteopathy in 1992. In addition, he completed the Corporation of London City of London Guides course and qualified in 2005.
His early academic appointments began at the University of Reading, where between 1967 and 1971 he served as a Demonstrator in the Department of Zoology, teaching agricultural and horticultural entomology. He continued his teaching career as a Lecturer in Biological Sciences at Portsmouth Polytechnic (now the University of Portsmouth) from 1970 to 1971. From 1972 to 1989 he worked at the Polytechnic of Central London (now the University of Westminster), progressing from Lecturer to Senior Lecturer in the Science Division and then in Paramedical Studies, teaching a wide range of biological subjects including human genetics, immunology, neuroscience and human physiology. During this period, he also taught physiology at St Mary’s Hospital School of Physiotherapy (1975–1976) and at Middlesex Hospital School of Physiotherapy (1977–1979). From 1983 to 1985, while still at PCL, he was Adjunct Associate Professor in Biological Sciences at New York University.
His long association with the British School of Osteopathy began in 1981, where he lectured in physiology while continuing his work at PCL. Between 1987 and 1989 he was seconded as Senior Research Fellow, and afterwards continued as Research Fellow until 1996. From 1989 to 2018 he lectured in physiology, pathology and the history of osteopathy. He served as Foundation Phase Co-ordinator and was a member of the Course Team between 1993 and 1996. He was appointed Academic Dean from 1996 to 1998, and subsequently Principal from 1998 to 2005, also serving as Chief Executive between 2001 and 2005. In addition to this, he taught part-time at Oxford Brookes University in the School of Osteopathy between 2006 and 2007, specialising in physiology, orthopaedics and neuroscience.
He has held several positions at the London School of Osteopathy between 2004 and 2010, acting as a member of the Board of Directors and as a part-time lecturer in physiology, neuroscience, research methods and statistics. He was also a member of the Course Committee and Examination Board. Between 2006 and 2010 he worked with the International College of Oriental Medicine as a part-time lecturer in western medicine, anatomy, research methods and statistics, served as the co-ordinator of the dissertation programme, and was a member of the Course Committee and Examination Board.
His broader professional contributions include serving as Director or Trustee on multiple boards and organisations. He is currently a Trustee of the Foundation for Paediatric Osteopathy (Osteopathic Centre for Children) and has previously served as Director and Chair of the Adverse Psychiatric Reaction Information Link (APRIL) between 2002 and 2012. He was Trustee and Chair of the National Osteopathic Archive, which he co-founded, from 2009 to 2017. He served on the board of the British School of Osteopathy between 1998 and 2006, was a member and later Director of the Council of Independent Colleges and Research Institutions (CICRI) from 1993 to 2003, and was Director of Osteopathic Continuing Professional Development (OCPD) Ltd between 1993 and 1998. He was also Director of the Consortium of Osteopathic Educational Institutions (COEI) from 1996 to 2006 and served as Chair from 2002 to 2006. He was a member of the Board of Directors at the London School of Osteopathy from 2006 to 2014, and was Governor of the Quintin Kynaston School, St John’s Wood, London between 1985 and 1987.
He has taken part in a wide range of degree validation work in higher education. His involvement includes serving on the internal validation panel at the Polytechnic of Central London for the BA in Urban and Regional Design in 1976, and acting as the external representative at West London College of Further Education for the internal validation panel for the BSc in Social Biology in 1983. He was a member of the Open University Validation Services panel for Foundation Degrees in Clinical Physiology and Sports Therapy at North-East Surrey College of Technology in 2001. He participated in validation panels for osteopathy courses in Paris and Aix-en-Provence, France, and took part in the University of Brighton panel validating the BSc (Hons) in Osteopathy at the London School of Osteopathy in 2005. In 2007 he was a member of the University of East London validation panel for the BSc in Herbal Medicine, and in 2020 he served on the validation panel for MSc and BSc programmes in Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine at the Northern College of Acupuncture.
His roles as external examiner include acting for the BSc in Osteopathy at the European School of Osteopathy for the University of Wales and later the University of Greenwich between 2005 and 2010. He was also external examiner for the BSc (Hons) in Osteopathic Medicine at the Surrey Institute of Osteopathic Medicine for the Open University Validation Services from 2004 to 2009. He examined the BSc in Herbal Medicine for the University of East London from 2007 to 2011 and acted as external examiner for the BSc (Hons) in Osteopathy at Oxford Brookes University in 2006.
He is the co-founder and co-archivist of the National Osteopathic Archive and served as Director and Chair between 2009 and 2017. His clinical experience includes practising as an osteopath at St Leonard’s Hospital in Shoreditch and at the Tachbrook Street clinic in Pimlico in 1983, working with the Medical Foundation for Victims of Torture in 1984, and providing osteopathic care at the Social Care Unit for the Homeless at St Martin-in-the-Fields. He initiated and worked in the first osteopathic clinic for homeless individuals at St Martin-in-the-Fields between 1993 and 1996.
His professional memberships include the Worshipful Society of Educators, in which he has served on committees and the court, and the Guild of Freeman of the City of London. He is also a member of the Scientific Committee of Pollination London Together, an inter-livery group.
His publications include London from the Top of a Bus: Its history, architecture…and much more (Clink Street Publishing, 2020), The British School of Osteopathy: The First 100 Years (XLibris, 2016), and as editor, Osteopathy: Its Past, Present and Future, a memorial volume tribute to Robin Kirk (Amazon, 2015). His earlier works include Osteopathy in Britain: The First Hundred Years (Booksurge, 2005; new revised edition 2025), A Guide to Audit in Osteopathic Practice in ‘Your Osteopathy: Getting your Professional Message Across’ (General Council and Register of Osteopaths, 1994), and Urban Ecology: A Teacher’s Resource Book (Cambridge University Press, 1984). His academic production further includes 25 published papers and articles, 47 papers delivered at conferences and external lectures, 16 book reviews, and 5 obituaries, all available on request.
His honours include being named a Freeman of the City of London, Fellow of the British School of Osteopathy, receiving the Diplôme d’Osteopathie Honoris Causa from the Collège d’Etudes Osteopathiques de Montreal, and being awarded an Honorary Fellowship of the University of Bedfordshire.
