Clare was Permanent Secretary of Defra from 2015 to 2019, and of the Department for Exiting the EU until its closure in early 2020. Before that, she worked in the Department of Health and the NHS, as well as in senior roles in the Ministry of Justice and the Department for Transport.
After leaving the Civil Service, Clare pursued a number of projects related to her interests in public policy, organisational change, and leadership, working with a range of organisations including Transport for London and the Bank of England.
Clare chairs the Health Foundation Covid-19 impact inquiry and is a member of numerous advisory and governance boards. Clare was made a Dame Commander of the Order of the Bath in the 2020 Birthday Honours.
Clare joined the MaPS Advisory Group in September 2021.