Sarah Sands

Sarah is a highly respected journalist, editor and communications advisor. She brings deep political, cultural and editorial insight to advise on reputation, policy engagement and public positioning across government, business and the non-profit sector. 
 
At Hawthorn, Sarah advises senior leaders and organisations across a range of sectors on strategic positioning, with a focus on policy engagement, leadership communication and narrative development. 
 
Before joining Hawthorn, Sarah was Editor of BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, the UK’s flagship current affairs broadcast. She previously served as Editor of the London Evening Standard, the first female Editor of The Sunday Telegraph, and Deputy Editor of The Daily Telegraph.  
 
Sarah chaired the G7 Gender Equality Advisory Council in 2021 and was reappointed in 2022, 2023, 2024 and 2025. She is a Trustee of the Science Museum, Bletchley Park, and the John Innes Centre, and sits on the boards of Channel 4, the Berkeley Group and Walpole. She is an ambassador for the Global Partnership for Education, an Associate at the Imperial War Museum, Trustee of Quintessentially Foundation and former Trustee of Index on Censorship. She co-founder of the Braemar Summit and FAWN (Friends of Afghan Women Network) and is an honorary fellow of Goldsmiths College and Lucy Cavendish College, Cambridge.