Lord Puttnam retired from film production in 1998 and now focuses on his work in education. He is chairman of the General Teaching Council, a board member of BECTA and chairman of the trustees of the National Teaching Awards. Lord Puttnam is chairman of Enigma Productions and has been a governor and visiting lecturer at the London School of Economics since 1997.

David Puttnam became the University of Sunderland's first chancellor in May 1998.

He first developed close ties with the university after he was presented with an honorary doctorate of letters in 1996. He now visits Sunderland regularly to officiate at key events, including graduation ceremonies.

After ten years in the advertising industry, Lord Puttnam spent 30 years as an independent film producer. His films include Chariots of Fire - which earned him an Oscar - Local Hero, The Killing Fields, The Mission and, most recently, My Life So Far. He was chairman and chief executive officer of Columbia Pictures from 1986-1988.

He is chairman of the National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts (NESTA), chairman of the National Museum of Photography, Film and Television and a member of the Engineering Council Senate.

Lord Puttnam is also a trustee of the National Museum of Science and Technology and of the Royal Academy of Arts.

For services to the British Film Industry, he was appointed Commander of the British Empire in 1982 and received a knighthood in 1995. He was honoured with a life peerage in 1997.

His publications include The Undeclared War (1997) - a history of the film industries in Europe and the US.