John Sparrow was born on 4 June 1933, the son of Richard and Winifred Sparrow. He was educated at the Stationers’ Company’s school in North London, and at LSE between 1951 and 1954. He graduated with a BSc in Economics and went on to become an FCA in 1957.
After short spells with Ford Motor Co and AEI-Hotpoint, he joined the Morgan Grenfell Group in 1964, and became a group Director in 1971 specialising in investment banking.
In 1967, John married Cynthia Whitehouse, a widow, and formed a strong family with stepchildren Chris and Richard.
In 1982, he was seconded from Morgan Grenfell to be head of the Central Policy Review Staff in the Cabinet Office for the Thatcher government. He was invited by the Chancellor (Geoffrey Howe) to “point up some possible long-term options” at a time of high spending and low growth which culminated in a well-worked if controversial paper. John’s time at No. 10 was later referred to in Lord Howe’s memoir.
Following the closure of the Cabinet Policy Unit, John returned to Morgan Grenfell and was knighted for his public service in 1984. After leaving Morgan Grenfell in 1988, he served ASW Holdings from 1987 to 1993 and Regalian Properties from 1990 to 1993. He was Chairman of the National Stud between 1988 and 1991 and Chairman of the Horserace Betting Levy Board (HBLB) from 1991 to 1999 – roles which perfectly aligned work with his passionate love of horse racing.
Sir John retained great affection for LSE throughout his life and was made a Governor of LSE in 1984. He served on Court for 20 years, becoming Vice-Chairman and serving as acting Chairman for a year during a temporary vacancy. Then LSE Director Ralf Dahrendorf wrote that John was “a calm and devoted Vice-Chairman, [who] provided continuity as well as much needed help with an appeal for funding”. Sir John was made an Honorary LSE Fellow in 1994. Sir John died peacefully on 21 March 2020.