Sarah Brown

Sarah Jane Brown (née Macaulay), born on 31 October 1963 in Beaconsfield, Buckinghamshire, is an English campaigner specializing in global health and education initiatives. She is the founder and president of the children's charity Theirworld, the executive chair of the Global Business Coalition for Education, and a co-founder of A World at School. Brown was also a founding partner of Hobsbawm Macaulay Communications, a public relations firm.

Early Life and Education:

Brown's mother, Pauline, was a teacher, and her father, Iain, worked for the publishing company Longman. During her early childhood, she was raised in Fife, Scotland, before her family moved to Tanzania when she was two years old, where her mother operated a school. Following her parents' separation at age eight, Brown, along with her mother, stepfather, and two younger brothers, Sean and Bruce, settled in North London. She attended Acland Burghley Secondary School and Camden School for Girls. Brown later studied psychology at the University of Bristol.

Career:

After completing her university education, Brown worked at Wolff Olins, a brand consultancy. In her thirties, she co-founded Hobsbawm Macaulay Communications with Julia Hobsbawm, representing clients such as the New Statesman, The Labour Party, and various trade unions. She left this firm in October 2001 after discovering she was pregnant with her first child.

Charitable and Advocacy Work:

In 2002, Brown established Theirworld, initially known as PiggyBankKids, with a focus on research to address pregnancy complications. The charity founded the Jennifer Brown Research Laboratory at the University of Edinburgh in 2004, focusing on obstetric and neonatal research, particularly preterm births. In 2015, Brown launched the Birth Cohort project at Edinburgh University, a £1.5 million study following the development of 400 prematurely born babies to understand factors influencing their health into adulthood.

Theirworld expanded its advocacy to global education through the digital movement A World at School, launched in 2013, and the #UpForSchool petition initiated in 2014. The petition aimed to hold world leaders accountable for commitments to universal primary education and amassed over 10 million signatures worldwide by September 2015. Brown has also been active in campaigning for maternal health, serving as global patron of The White Ribbon Alliance for Safe Motherhood, and co-founding the Maternal Mortality Campaign. She delivered the keynote speech at the 62nd World Health Assembly in 2009 alongside UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, emphasizing persistent maternal health issues.

Leadership and Recognition:

Brown co-chaired the leadership group on maternal and newborn mortality launched in 2009 and chaired the United Nations event for a new consensus on maternal and child health, during which several countries declared the removal of user fees for pregnant women. She has engaged extensively with international organizations, including the WHO and the UN, advocating for improvements in maternal and child health.

In education advocacy, Brown helped lead the #UpForSchool campaign, which garnered widespread support from NGOs, celebrities, and political leaders, notably during the 2015 UN General Assembly. She has promoted education equality and accountability through social media and various public campaigns.

Other Activities:

Brown holds patronages with Women’s Aid, the SHINE Education Trust, and Maggie’s Cancer Centres. She is also a patron of the CBI First Women Awards. Recognized for her influence on social issues, she has received awards including the Vision and Impact Award from the Global Business Coalition for Health and the Susan G. Komen for the Cure Global Leadership Award. She has been featured on influential social media lists and was considered one of the most powerful British women on Twitter.

Personal Life:

Brown's relationship with Gordon Brown began in 1994 after they shared a flight. Their relationship was publicly confirmed in 1997. They married on 3 August 2000 in North Queensferry, Fife. The couple experienced the loss of a daughter, Jennifer Jane, who was born prematurely and died at ten days old in December 2001. They have additional children, including a daughter born in 2003.