On graduation, Gibb became a teacher at a secondary modern school in Newham, East London. She then qualified as a social worker, working in the neighbourhood of Scotswood in Newcastle upon Tyne.[4] She rose through the profession to become deputy director of social services in Kensington and Chelsea in 1988, and then became director in 1990. In 2003, Gibb was appointed the chief executive of Camden London Borough Council,[4] in which post she remained until 2011.[3][5]
Gibb chaired the Church of England independent review (announced in February 2016) into the case of Peter Ball, a former bishop of Gloucester who was imprisoned in 2015 for sexual abuse.[5] Gibb's report was published in June 2017 and concluded: "Ball's priority was to protect and promote himself and he maligned the abused. The Church colluded with that rather than seeking to help those he had harmed, or assuring itself of the safety of others."[11] The report resulted in George Carey being asked to step down as an honorary assistant bishop by Justin Welby, the archbishop of Canterbury.[12]
Personal life
In 1970, Gibb married the British diplomat Brian Graham Gibb,[13] and later married Henry Blythe in 1990. She has one son.[3]