From 1 April this year the honour of holding the oldest continuous secular office under the Crown will be held for a year by a local resident, Lady (Shelagh) Nichols.

The Office of High Sheriff of the county is a position which dates back over 1000 years to before the Norman Conquest and though it is now the second highest position in the county it was only in the reign of Edward VII that it gave precedence to the office of Lord Lieutenant.

High Sheriffs are selected by the Sovereign in a meeting of the Privy Council, when the custom of “pricking” the appointee’s name with a bodkin still takes place. The official duties of the High Sheriff, many of which are delegated today, include attendance at royal visits to the county; supervising the well being and protection of High Court judges when on circuit in the county and carrying out High Court writs and orders; acting as the Returning Officer for parliamentary elections in county constituencies, ensuring the proclamation of the accession of a new sovereign and maintaining loyalty to the Crown. Nowadays the High Sheriff tends to support voluntary and statutory organisations in the county, often those assisting young people in difficult circumstances.

Shelagh made her Declaration at the end of March in a simple and relaxed ceremony which was kindly hosted by the Newell family in Chandlers Cross. A few years ago her husband, Sir Richard Nichols, was Lord Mayor of London, and the Declaration ceremony was attended by the current Lord Mayor, Sir Robert Finch, as well as various county and City of London dignitaries, including her immediate predecessor, Lady Lyell and former High Sheriff Morton Neal, a Sarratt resident, who had nominated Shelagh for the office. It was a very special occasion too for Shelagh’s parents, Tony and Mary Loveband, who moved to live near their daughter some ten years ago.

In addition to her other duties, Shelagh outlined her special interests as the support of those helping young homeless people in the county and projects to identify and give special assistance to primary school children in deprived circumstances, with a view to setting them on a more stable course early in life. All those at her Declaration ceremony gave her their heartfelt good wishes for a successful year to come, a sentiment which will be echoed by all her friends in Chipperfield and around. S.A.M.