 Moorhouse was born in Bradford, Yorkshire, attended Bradford Grammar School and went to 4th Shipley Scouts.Moorhouse's inspiration to become seriously involved in national and international competitive swimming came at the age of 12 when he watched David Wilkie win gold at the Montreal Olympics.In 1980 he was selected for the England Junior team and broke the national junior records for both the 100 m and 200 m breaststroke.