Simon Davies has been Headmaster of Eastbourne College since 2005. Having grown up in a clergy household, he read PPP at Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford, where he was Captain of Rugby and Captain of Boats, then went to work in the City, first at Chase Manhattan, then as a futures and options broker at James Capel. He established a futures and options desk at Goodbody James Capel in Dublin in the late 1980s before deciding that this was not what he wanted to do long-term.

He taught for a year at a London prep school and then went on to do a secondary PGCE in science at London University's Institute of Education. This was followed by an eight-year stint at Abingdon School, which included two years as head of the biology department and four as a boarding housemaster, as well as much rugby and rowing coaching. He left Abingdon to take up the post of Vice Master at Bedford School and moved on three years later, aged 41, to become Headmaster of Eastbourne College. Simon is married to Robina, an editor, and has two sons and a daughter aged 13, 11 and 9, who are currently at St Andrew's School. His hobbies include sea-swimming (all year round), fly-fishing and falling asleep in front of the television.