Colin Bell is the Chief Executive Officer of the Council of British International Schools (COBIS), the largest global association for British international schools overseas. Since joining COBIS in 2010, Colin has led the organisation through a period of significant growth, with over 349 member schools in more than 88 countries and a growing network of partners and supporting associates. 

With a background in teaching and education improvement across the UK, Europe, and Asia, Colin brings a deep understanding of global education systems and international school development. Under his leadership, COBIS operates a highly regarded, rigorous quality assurance and accreditation framework, recognised by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) in Japan, Education and Training Evaluation Commission (ETEC) in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Office for National Education Standards and Quality Assurance Standards (ONESQA) in Thailand, and is externally validated by the UK Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education (QAA). 

Colin is a member of the UK Government’s International Education Sector Advisory Group, which is chaired by Ministers from the Department for Education, Department for Business and Trade, and the Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office. In addition, Colin is appointed to Governing Boards of the British School in Tokyo, The British International School, Ukraine, and on the UCAS International Advisory Group. He is founding member of the British International Schools Safeguarding Coalition (BISSC) and the International Task Force for Child Protection (ITFCP) and is a regular contributor to international conferences and publications on school improvement, safeguarding, child protection, and global mobility in education. 

Colin is passionate about high-quality, inclusive British education overseas and the role of international schools in strengthening global links, raising standards, and positively impacting the life chances of children and young people worldwide.