Lesley Cowley OBE

Lesley Cowley OBE was appointed Chair of Public Digital in January 2026, after serving as a non-executive director on the Board since 2022. She brings extensive experience in digital infrastructure and public sector reform, and has supported Public Digital's strategic development and governance, contributing to expansion across new markets and growing portfolio of public sector transformation programmes.

Cowley is best known as the former CEO of .uk domain name registry Nominet UK. She joined Nominet as operations director in 1999 before being made managing director in 2002 and CEO in 2004, serving in that position for 10 years. Under her leadership, Nominet was established as a widely respected domain name registry over 15 years. She was previously Chair of the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) which manages the records of 49 million drivers and 40 million vehicles in the UK. She also chaired Companies House, which incorporates and dissolves limited companies in the UK, and previously chaired Airport Coordination, the world's leading airport coordinator. She is currently Chair of Building Digital UK (BDUK), the government body bringing broadband and mobile coverage to hard-to-reach places across the UK.

In 2010 she was appointed OBE by The Queen for services to the internet and e-commerce. She served as ICANN ccNSO chair. Cowley was named one of the top five most influential women in UK IT by Computer Weekly.

Education & Professional Qualifications

Lesley has a master's degree in Business Administration (MBA) with distinction from Bristol Business School, University of the West of England in 1997. She completed the senior executive programme at Ashridge Business School in 2014.

Career History

• Chair, Public Digital (January 2026 – present)
• Chair, Building Digital UK
• Chair, DVLA (2014 onwards)
• Chair, Companies House
• Chair, Airport Coordination
• CEO, Nominet UK (2004–2014)
• Operations Director, Nominet UK (1999–2002)

What Lesley Cowley could bring to Chair at Public Digital: Cowley's combination of deep digital infrastructure expertise, large-scale public sector transformation experience, and successful stewardship of mission-critical national systems positions her to drive Public Digital's strategic expansion. Her track record establishing trusted governance frameworks and managing complex digital ecosystems—demonstrated through leading domain registration for millions of UK businesses and overhauling driver licensing infrastructure—could accelerate Public Digital's growth across government clients and enhance its influence in public sector digital reform.