[2] The Jebbs were a distinguished Irish family, prominent in both the Church of Ireland and the legal profession: her paternal grandparents were Robert Jebb QC and Harriet Horsley, a descendant of Bishop Samuel Horsley.
Her mother was a daughter of John Russell, Archdeacon of Clogher and his wife Frances Story.
Jebb worked in the Civil Service from 1913 to 1917 in the Department of the Ministry of Labour.
During this period, Jebb represented the college on the Management Committee for the Florence Nightingale Foundation (FNF), a charity organisation that provides scholarships to health professionals in the UK.
[citation needed] Her cousin, Eglantyne Jebb (1876–1928), founded the charity Save the Children.