Eglantyne Jebb

Eglantyne Jebb and her sister Dorothy Buxton founded the first Save the Children organisation in May 1919, in London, United Kingdom.

Shocked by the aftermath of World War 1 and the Russian Revolution, they were determined to secure improvements to children’s lives. Their goal was to create a powerful international organisation, which would extend its ramifications to the remotest corner of the globe. This was soon achieved – and Save the Children continues to build on this success.

Eglantyne Jebb was the first to press for worldwide safeguards for children. The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, adopted by the United Nations in 1989 and now ratified by nearly all countries worldwide, has its roots in her pioneering work.

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2008 Twenty-eight Save the Children organisations work to secure children's rights and improve children's lives in over 125 countries worldwide.

1997 June: agreement on creating the International Save the Children Alliance, with a more formalised structure. Secretariat created in London soon afterwards.

1989 November: the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child [PDF, 32k] adopted by the UN. This underpins all Save the Children's work.

1977 A number of Save the Children organisations formed the Save the Children Alliance, to coordinate international advocacy work from Geneva.

1946 International Save the Children conference with representatives from 34 countries, to push for international recognition of the Declaration of Geneva.

1939-1945 During World War II, Save the Children organisations in neutral countries continued to work - often on behalf of sister organisations - in countries directly affected by the war.

1932 American Save the Children Fund set up to help children during the Great Depression.

1924 September: Declaration of Geneva adopted by the League of Nations, predecessor to the UN. There are now twenty member organisations in the Save the Children Union.

1923 February: the 'Declaration of Geneva', precursor to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, developed by the International Save the Children Union.

1920 January: International Save the Children Union officially founded.

1919 May: the first Save the Children organisation is launched in London, UK - the first organisation to press for worldwide safeguards for children.