Jessica is originally from Oxford, and has a Master's Degree in Physics. She has spent the majority of her career in the UK Civil Service, working in Cabinet Office and the Government Office for Science on a range of resilience issues. Jessica's roles have mainly been in crisis response teams, preparing for and responding to civil emergencies that cause harm to people and disrupt critical services and infrastructure.

Her main interests are around the mechanics of how governments operate: the formal structures and informal routes governments use to make decisions and implement policies, particularly in emergencies; and the boundary between policy and law, particularly in times of crisis or when there are pressing national security considerations.

Jessica is a Lord Browne Scholar.