Cleaver studied
Literae humaniores at
Trinity College, Oxford, graduating in 1962. He served on the boards of
Smith & Nephew,
Lockheed Martin UK and
IX Europe. In the field of education, Cleaver chaired the Governors of
Birkbeck, University of London and the
Royal College of Music. In August 2007, he was appointed Chairman of
EngineeringUK (formerly the Engineering and Technology Board (ETB)). In this role, Cleaver was a driving force behind the founding of the UK's
Big Bang Fair which was first run in 2008 and by 2015 had become one of Europe's largest science, engineering and technology fairs for young people. Cleaver retired from his role at EngineeringUK in 2011 and as Patron of the Big Bang Fair a few years later. Cleaver was chairman of recruitment company
SThree and financial wrap provider
Novia Financial. Cleaver died on 13 July 2025, at the age of 87. == References ==