Doreen Bird FISTD ARAD (27 January 1928 - 4 February 2004) founded the Bird College of Dance and Theatre Performance in Sidcup in 1949. Initially there were only eight students. Bird was the principal of the college until 1998. She was appointed examiner of the Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing Modern Theatre Branch in 1957, National Dance Branch in 1958 and Imperial Ballet Branch in 1964.
As a committee member for 16 years of the Modern Theatre Branch from 1970, she helped to compile all new major modern dance and tap syllabi. She served as a council member for the Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing from 1970 to 1975. She received the Imperial Faculty Award in 1996 and an Hon MA Degree from the University of Greenwich in 1999.
Matthew Kelly, Phrosso Pfister and Sian Phillips are patrons of The Doreen Bird Foundation.