Simon studied psychology at the University of London before completing his PhD at the Institute of Psychiatry, London. He has been involved in autism research since 1996 and for much of his career worked as a psychologist on the International Molecular Genetics Study of Autism Consortium (IMGSAC), a project that aimed to identify the genes for autism spectrum disorder (ASD). IMGSAC is now part of a much larger international consortium - the Autism genome Project. Simon’s PhD research focussed on how adults with ASD perceive and identify faces, engage in eye contact and recognise facial expressions. This research led to Simon being awarded an Autism Speaks’ post-doctoral fellowship to study the brain basis of differences in the way children with ASD process faces compared to children without ASD. During the last few years of his research Simon worked at the University of Oxford on a number of neuroimaging and technology projects, in particular the use of virtual reality in educating children with autism. In late 2008, Simon took up a post as Autism Speaks’ European Director of Scientific Development and over the last three years he has worked across Europe as part of the organisation’s Global Autism Public Health initiative. In 2009, Simon partnered with a group of London schools and UK academics to establish the Pan-London Autism Schools Network (PLASN), which is a platform for school practitioners and researchers to collaborate on education-based projects. Simon joined Autistica in January 2012 as their Research Director.