Clifford has been studying, practising and teaching Shiatsu since 1981. He served a full-time apprenticeship with Pauline Sasaki in 1986, and became the first non-American graduate of her teaching programme. 

Since then, Clifford has worked at developing the syllabus at the Shiatsu College, and has also established a Shiatsu practice in Norwich, which has grown to include three full-time practitioners. During this time he has acquired a growing international reputation which has led him to teach in the U.S.A. and widely throughout Europe.