She graduated with a BA (Hons) in Special English at the University of Hull in 1979, before completing her Post Graduate Certificate of Education from the University of Durham in 1980. Her career in education was based in County Durham, at one point being a teacher of English at Wolsingham Secondary School, where she, herself, was educated. As a child, Mrs Tweddle grew up in County Durham and has lived in the Crook area for 60 years – all her life.