Simon Nelson joined QAHE as Chief Executive in 2021 and was designated QAHE’s first Chief Executive & Accountable Officer in April 2026. He leads the overall strategy and performance of QAHE, shaping the long‑term development, reach, and institutional maturity of its UK and international presence.
Simon brings 25 years’ experience creating and scaling ground‑breaking products and services across education and media. He was the founding CEO of FutureLearn, growing the platform to 15 million learners in partnership with over a quarter of the world’s leading universities. He later served as Group Digital Director at Nord Anglia Education.
Earlier in his career, Simon held senior leadership roles at the BBC, where he led digital strategy and the development of services including iPlayer, radio streaming, and podcasting, helping build BBC.co.uk into one of the world’s leading digital platforms.