Inglis was born at Perranporth in Cornwall and during 1970 and 1971 attended the Falmouth School of Art before spending a year at the Exeter College of Art and Design. She studied at Sheffield City Polytechnic from 1980 to 1983 and then at the Royal College of Art in London between 1984 and 1987. At the Royal College, she took a master's degree, won several prizes and spent time in Athens as an exchange student. On graduation, Inglis was awarded a year-long fellowship in painting at the Gloucestershire College of Art and Design and subsequently held the post of senior lecturer at Birmingham Polytechnic. Inglis retained the Birmingham post throughout her life and also had visiting lecturer posts elsewhere.
