Simon is an Associate Professor in Academic Development and Director of a Centre researching Innovative and Transformative Higher Education. He is an expert in developing communities of practice in Pedagogic Research, building innovative pedagogic research communities to support university teaching and research strategies. He has an established national reputation as an external consultant advisor in Learning & Teaching. He is frequently asked to sit on HEI panels and participate in approval and validation events using professional standards and regulatory frameworks. He is adept at working with colleagues in identifying gaps in terms of CPD for academic staff in the sector and building engaging workshops with associated pedagogic materials. His work reflects best practice and research in the UK HE sector, promoting a pedagogical approach founded on active learning and stakeholder engagement. 

His management and leadership style is based upon his values and philosophy, being both people and task-oriented and incorporating teamwork, facilitation, commitment and integrity. Previous roles in higher education have included Deputy Dean for international and external income, Head of Department of Education, Head of Teacher Education, Director of Research, Director of Masters Programmes, Learning, Teaching & Quality Adviser and Course Leader. He has taught a wide range of education courses in school leadership and management, professional development of teachers, and sociology of education. 

His involvement and understanding of HE are extensive. He has been an external examiner at six institutions. He strongly advocates student-centred and active/inclusive learning that acknowledges student experience and engagement as the essential elements of any learning experience. Simon was appointed as Visiting Professor in Education in China and Visiting Fellow at a UK College of Art. He has previously developed and run Master's programmes at a university in New York. Furthermore, he has championed opportunities for establishing international partnerships focused on increasing international recruitment from target countries.

Simon has proven expertise in conducting qualitative research. He has worked as a research colleague with professors from King's College London, Goldsmiths College, Roehampton University, Edgehill University and Plymouth University. He has published approximately 35 academic publications and five books, including series co-editor for seven books in the Contemporary Issues in Education Studies published by Bloomsbury. In 2018 he was commissioned to research and report on the impact of the UK Industrial Strategy in Higher Education by Advance HE. In 2020 he co-edited the text Innovations in Active Learning in Higher Education. His co-authored book Soft Systems Methodology in Education will be published in 2022 by Springer. Currently, he is engaged in three funded research projects on school transitions, Higher Education learning experiences before, during and after Covid-19, and an institution-wide impact curriculum evaluation. 

He has worked as Director of Research and was responsible for the strategic leadership and development of doctoral education across a large Faculty. He has a record of active participation in national scale doctoral training groups. He co-convenes Society for Research in Higher Education ECR network, working with postgraduate students, postdoctoral and EC researchers and academics researching. He has expertise in developing strategies for increasing home and international recruitment to PhD and professional doctorates for both home and international target markets. A particular skill is improving completion times for doctoral programmes by identifying reasons for non-completion, targeting problems and proposing solutions.