Alison Peden was a medievalist at St Hilda's College, Oxford, before moving to Scotland in 1990, where she taught at the Universities of Glasgow and Stirling. She trained in the Scottish Episcopal Church and at Edinburgh University for her ordination in 2002. When serving as Rector of Holy Trinity, Stirling, she became involved in the formation of ordinands. She was appointed Provincial Director of Ordinands in 2011, with oversight of recruitment and selection for ministry throughout the Scottish Episcopal Church.