He was the second son of Charles Cubitt Gooch, merchant banker, and Mary Blake, and an older brother to George Peabody Gooch. He was born in Paddington and educated at Eton College and Trinity College, Cambridge before being called to the bar at the Inner Temple. He had a keen interest in education, and was a member of the London School Board from 1897 until its abolition in 1904.Obituary: Sir Henry Gooch, 19 January 1959, p. 10 In 1907 he was elected to the London County Council, representing Dulwich for the Conservative-supported Municipal Reform Party.The London County Council Election, Great Municipal Reform Victory, The Times, 4 March 1907, p. 6 He presided over a number of the LCC education committees.
