Thomas Hancock Nunn was the son of Sarah Hancock and John Nunn, and a member of the Hancock family of Marlborough, England. The Hancocks were a significant British family in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, known for their contributions to science, art, and industry.

Although Thomas Hancock Nunn’s brother, John Hancock Nunn, followed the family line in the rubber industry, Thomas himself instead chose to devote his life to the poor and had no interest in business. He is best known for being a pioneer of social services in Whitechapel, London.