Jennifer Rowe (born 2 October 1955) is a retired British

civil servant The civil service is a collective term for a sector of government composed mainly of career civil service personnel hired rather than elected, whose institutional tenure typically survives transitions of political leadership. A civil service offic ...

and former chief executive of the

Supreme Court of the United Kingdom The Supreme Court of the United Kingdom (initialism: UKSC) is the final court of appeal for all civil cases in the United Kingdom and all criminal cases originating in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, as well as some limited criminal cases ...

and the

Judicial Committee of the Privy Council The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (JCPC) is the highest court of appeal for the Crown Dependencies, the British Overseas Territories, some Commonwealth countries and a few institutions in the United Kingdom. Established on 14 August ...

Early life and education

Jenny Rowe was born on 2 October 1955, and educated at Sir James Smith's School,

Camelford Camelford () is a town and civil parish in north Cornwall, England, United Kingdom, situated in the River Camel valley northwest of Bodmin Moor. The town is approximately north of Bodmin and is governed by Camelford Town Council. The ward pop ...

. She graduated from

King's College London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public university, public research university in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of George IV of the United Kingdom, King George IV ...

in 1977 with a BA (Hons) in History, and studied at the College of Law, Lancaster Gate, and

Birkbeck College Birkbeck, University of London (formally Birkbeck College, University of London), is a public research university located in London, England, and a member institution of the University of London. Established in 1823 as the London Mechanics' ...

, where she gained an MSc in Policy Administration in 1984.

Civil service

Rowe joined the

civil service The civil service is a collective term for a sector of government composed mainly of career civil service personnel hired rather than elected, whose institutional tenure typically survives transitions of political leadership. A civil service offic ...

shortly after graduating from Birkbeck, and held a number of posts in the

Lord Chancellor's Department The Lord Chancellor's Department was a United Kingdom government department answerable to the Lord Chancellor with jurisdiction over England and Wales. Created in 1885 as the Lord Chancellor's Office with a small staff to assist the Lord Chance ...

. From 1990 to 1993, Rowe was Principal Private Secretary to the

Lord Chancellor The Lord Chancellor, formally titled Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain, is a senior minister of the Crown within the Government of the United Kingdom. The lord chancellor is the minister of justice for England and Wales and the highest-ra ...

, and from 1993 to 1995, was Principal Establishment and Finance Officer at the Serious Fraud Office. She returned to the

in 1995 as Head of Criminal Policy, and was re-appointed Principal Private Secretary to the Lord Chancellor in 1997. In 1999, she became Director of Corporate Services, and in 2002, Director of Finance and Corporate Affairs. She served as Secretary to the Butterfield ''Review of Criminal Investigations and Prosecutions conducted by HM Customs and Excise'' in 2003. In 2004, she was appointed Director of Policy Administration at the Attorney General's Office. In January 2008, the

Jack Straw John Whitaker Straw (born 3 August 1946) is a British politician who served in the Cabinet from 1997 to 2010 under the Labour governments of Tony Blair and Gordon Brown. He held two of the traditional Great Offices of State, as Home Secretar ...

, announced Rowe's appointment as the first chief executive of the new

, which began operation in October 2009. Rowe retired in October 2015 and was succeeded by Mark Ormerod as chief executive of the

. Rowe was appointed Companion of the

Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by King George I of Great Britain, George I on 18 May 1725. Recipients of the Order are usually senior British Armed Forces, military officers or senior Civil Service ...

(CB) in the 2013 Birthday Honours.

Personal life

Rowe married the late John Ellis in 1993. Her interests include travelling, reading, theatre, opera, museums and galleries, gardening and watching cricket. She is a member of the

Royal Over-Seas League The Royal Over-Seas League (ROSL) is a not-for-profit institution founded in 1910, dedicated to promoting international friendship pursuant to its royal charter, an ethos which binds its global membership. ROSL has a Grade I listed clubhouse i ...

Middlesex County Cricket Club Middlesex County Cricket Club is one of eighteen first-class county clubs within the domestic cricket structure of England and Wales. It represents the historic county of Middlesex which has effectively been subsumed within the ceremonial ...

and

Surrey County Cricket Club Surrey County Cricket Club (Surrey CCC) is a first-class club in county cricket, one of eighteen in the domestic cricket structure of England and Wales. It represents the historic county of Surrey, including areas that now form South Londo ...

, and has been a Trustee of the

Royal British Legion The Royal British Legion (RBL), formerly the British Legion, is a British charity providing financial, social and emotional support to members and veterans of the British Armed Forces, their families and dependants. Membership Service in th ...

since 2005.

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rowe, Jenny 1955 births Alumni of King's College London Alumni of Birkbeck, University of London Civil servants in the Lord Chancellor's Department Civil servants in the Serious Fraud Office (United Kingdom) Civil servants in the Ministry of Justice (United Kingdom) Civil servants in the Attorney General's Office (United Kingdom) People from Cornwall Private secretaries in the British Civil Service Living people Companions of the Order of the Bath