Alfred Schofield was born in Newton Heath, Manchester in 1904. After completing his general education, he went on to study engineering at a technical college in Manchester. He went on to work for A.V. Roe & Co Ltd where he gained experience as a tool maker in the machine shop before going on to work as a draughtsman. From 1943 onwards, he was Technical Liaison Engineer on Interchangeability for aircraft parts manufactured by A.V. Roe & Co Ltd during the Second World War. Interchangeability became important during the war by improving production times and helping to replace damaged sections on aircraft more efficiently.

He left A.V. Roe & Co Ltd in 1949 to work as a consulting engineer running his own business and for a company involved in the designing of dry-cleaning and air extraction equipment.