Barnard went to
Cambridge University to study Modern and Mediaeval Languages at
Selwyn College followed by a
PGCE at
Exeter University. He taught modern languages at Cheltenham Grammar School from 1971 to 1974; John Lyon School, Harrow from 1974 to 2002;
Godolphin and Latymer School in Hammersmith from 2002 to 2004; and Aldenham School from 2002. He has written music and arrangements for hymns and a number of arrangements for
spirituals. Arguably his most famous work is his
hymn tune Guiting Power, which usually provides the music for
Michael Saward's hymn
Christ triumphant, ever reigning. Barnard has been involved in directing the music for
BBC Radio 2's
Sunday Half Hour. In 2006, he was a judge for a BBC hymn-writing competition, for which he composed the hymn tunes
Kirknewton and
Gowanbank for two of the winning entries. The vast majority of John Barnard's hymn tunes are named after villages or towns in the United Kingdom; for example,
Guiting Power is a village in the
Cotswolds, Gloucestershire. His compositions are represented in the United States and Canada by the Hope Publishing Company, and in the United Kingdom by
Jubilate Hymns and
Oxford University Press. ==Conviction==