He first attended Bradford College, then studied graphic design at the University of Northumbria and later Natural History Illustration at the Royal College of Art where his tutors included John Norris Wood, Quentin Blake and Sheila Robinson.
Manning was raised in Haworth, near Keighley, Yorkshire, England. In 1990 he devised and ran the Bachelor honours Illustration option at the Glasgow School of Art as Course Leader. As an artist Manning is represented by Godfrey & Watt. and Street Judes Manning is a Fellow of the English Association and in 2015, was awarded an Honorary Fellowship by Bradford College.
