YMCA East Surrey – 18,000 people Benefitted over the Past Year.

Suzanne and I, and my cadet, Imogen, had a wonderful afternoon at the Horley Youth Club run by YMCA East Surrey. Situated in the Old Fire Station, CEO – Ian Burks, and his team walked us through the various activities the YMCA East Surrey undertake. In the past financial year their services have benefitted over 18,000 people covering key areas of support from providing accommodation (over 25,000 nights), professional support in family centres and health and well-being services.

We were able to see their wonderful bus which enables them to undertake outreach initiatives in areas where anti-social behaviour issues have developed, and also the incredible music studio where young people can come and play instruments or create music direct from computer programmes. There were many young people enjoying the facilities and helping to cook (and eat) some food.

I was also joined by Pat Cannon, who carried out an assessment on the centre on behalf of the High Sheriff Youth Awards earlier this year which led to a grant being given to help them with their work.  

A Raindrop Falls – the Unveiling of a Great New Surrey Book at Wotton House.

Given the appalling weather, the title of a new book A Raindrop Falls could not have been more appropriate. Written by Lucy Reynolds with illustrations by Katie Hicks it is an environment story following a raindrop that falls on Leith Hill down to the sea, exploring Surrey’s rich heritage and habitats and addressing pollution and water quality issues. The children from St Mark’s and All Saints School from Godalming were involved in the writing and drawing and were on hand to see the book unveiled which caused intense excitement as they searched for their contributions inside. They also unveiled a large poster of the raindrop’s journey standing by the side of the Tillingbourne river as the launch was held at Wotton House near Dorking.

Chair of Surrey County Council, Tim Hall, was on hand to give them each a copy and they also each received a certificate to mark their involvement in the project.

Remembering our War Heroes at Guildford Cathedral & Brookwood American Military Cemetery.

Suzanne and I were honoured to join the Lord Lieutenant and his wife Sarah at the County Service of Remembrance at Guildford Cathedral. The Lord Lieutenant and I were joined in laying wreaths at the Altar by Bishop Andrew, the Dean Bob Cooper, Chair of Surrey County Council Tim Hall, Deputy Mayor of Guildford Jane Tyson, Chief Constable Tim de Meyer, Police and Crime Commissioner Lisa Townsend, Surrey Deputy Bench Chair Mike Kelly JP, and Professor Amelia Hadfield from the University of Surrey and Zuzanna one of the Lord Lieutenant’s cadets who lay a wreath on behalf of the Royal British Legion. 

https://www.surrey.police.uk/cadetsI was also joined by my two cadets Imogen and Grace who, after the end of the service, also joined Suzanne and I at the Remembrance Ceremony held at the Brookwood American Military Cemetery hosted by The American Battle Monuments Commission.

Woking Chamber of Commerce Business Exhibition.

I was delighted to meet many familiar faces at the Woking Chamber of Commerce Business Exhibition held in the impressive ballroom at the Hilton Hotel in Woking.

After a breakfast seminar which provided latest updates on the impending local government reorganisation I toured round the stands with over 80 exhibitors; and as a trustee of the Community Foundation for Surrey I was pleased to see them represented and also the Woking and Sam Beare Hospice. 

It was a pleasure seeing Cllr Amanda Boote, Mayor of Woking, and it was good to see that the exhibition was well attended.

Guildford Samaritans AGM.

Suzanne and I were delighted to be asked to attend the Guildford Samaritans for their AGM at the Holiday Inn in the company of two of their Patrons, the Lord Lieutenant and Sally Varah.

It is a special event in their calendar as, together with their summer party, it is one of only two events during the year when the Guildford Samaritans get together. For most of the rest of the year they work in small numbers on shifts manning the phones and on-line responding to people in need. In the year to March 2025, they averaged 154 listening volunteers who spent in total 8,950 hours on the phone answering 26,011 calls. Each listening volunteer is known by their first name and a three digit number.

In addition to the listening volunteers they have recruitment and training teams, an outreach team and a team of nine volunteers who support Send and Coldingley prisons. They also have representation across four locations at the University. The evening was compered by Heather Fisk the Branch Manager who also presided over the giving of awards for dedication and long service. There was also an inspiring speech about Alcoholics Anonymous from someone with lived experience which he bravely shared with the room.

Guildford Samaritans is a charitable incorporated organisation run entirely by volunteers relying on generous donations and sales through their shop in Godalming.

https://www.samaritans.org/branches/guildford

The Woodhouse Craft Centre – Oxted.

I was delighted to cross the County with Suzanne to visit Oxted in Tandridge for the Open Morning at the Woodhouse Craft Centre.

We hugely enjoyed seeing a thriving local community hub bustling with people and activities including upholstery, cane-chair repairing, weaving, spinning, various needlework skills, crafts and more. With delicious cakes and other refreshments we were also nourished by the wonderful people we met and their clear enjoyment in each other’s company. When we ventured outside we also discovered a large ‘Men in Sheds’ project, where a number of men (mostly called Dave?!) were beavering away in very well appointed workshops creating wonderful pieces either for sale in the Woodhouse Craft Centre or that had been specially commissioned. 

The history dates back to 1971 when the Woodhouse Craft Centre was founded by Mrs Betty Woodhouse. It was established to provide employment in friendly surroundings for elderly and disabled persons resident in Oxted and surrounding areas. From small beginnings in an old school, the Centre is now housed in a large new air-conditioned building opposite Tandridge Leisure Pool and next to the Red Cross.

Run today by Manager Liz Martin-Lawrence and Assistant Manager, Sarah Spires with strong Trustee Support it was a pleasure to spend time at the Woodhouse Centre and see the extraordinary ability the creative arts has to bring people together, relieve stress or loneliness and generally uplift the soul.

Attending ‘Guru Nanak Gurpurab’ – A Sacred Sikh Festival.

Suzanne and I were given the great honour last week of being invited to participate in one of the most sacred festivals in Sikhism, Guru Nanak Gurpurab.

Guru Nanak was the founder of Sikhism and the festival celebrates his birth in 1469. It is usually held on the day of the full moon in November and he is one of ten Sikh Gurus celebrated as being responsible for shaping the beliefs of Sikhs.

We were invited to the Gurdwara in Camberley which only opened in May of this year. Previously there had been no Sikh place of worship in Surrey, and Sikhs had to travel to Slough or Reading to worship. We were made to feel so welcome by everybody and were escorted and educated by Kam Kandola and her colleagues from the outreach team. What was very evident immediately was how contemporary the Gurdwara was. Whilst observing the strict teachings and the removal of shoes and covering of heads, the feeling was very relaxed and reflected an understanding that encouraging the local community in the twenty first century to embrace religion requires a more modern approach. Anybody is welcome to visit and food is prepared all day long and offered to all. People all sit on the floor in the Langar (free kitchen) to designate that everyone is equal. The Gurdwara opens at 4am and people can attend at any time for whatever time period and as such it provides a continuous worship rather than having designated services.

The Gurdwara was created out of an old disused building which has been transformed into a vibrant community hub. The Outreach team have been keen to embrace the local community, establishing relationships with the local churches and mosque and Suzanne and I thoroughly enjoyed our visit.   

Breakfast with The Aurora Rotary Club.

As High Sheriff you frequently have to sing for your supper when attending engagements across the County but singing for my breakfast was a new experience. The Aurora Rotary Club in Shepperton meet regularly early in the morning at the Warren Lodge Hotel in Shepperton and I was very keen to join them, not only because of the promise of a Full English, but because they very generously donated to the High Sheriff Youth Awards (HSYA) recently, which I currently chair. The HSYA supports local organisations which help reduce potential anti-social behaviour by supporting young people and the Aurora Rotary Club kindly helped us through their donation.

Ron Enticott, a fellow trustee of HSYA, and a Rotarian, kindly helped form a double act, where I spoke about the history and the current role of the High Sheriff, whilst he enlightened the audience with information on the HSYA.

It was wonderful meeting such an active group of people and hear all about their upcoming activities, particularly in the build up to Christmas; whilst enjoying that delicious Full English.

Claygate Youth and Community Hub.

Any event involving sparklers and toasted marsh-mallows was going to be enjoyed by Suzanne and myself but we had an exceptionally great time being hosted by the Claygate Youth and Community Hub. It is a remarkable place being in an old village school hall provided by Surrey County Council. It offers fun, youth activities and support to all young people aged 11-19, providing a safe and welcoming space for them to socialise, learn new skills, and get support and advice when needed. Open as a drop-in centre on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays each week as well as offering holiday clubs for 11-16s.

It was wonderful to see the rapport between the staff, volunteers and the young people who are encouraged to express themselves whilst enjoying activities from cooking, playing games, trying new activities and developing social skills. The Hub believes in empowering young people, helping them to achieve their full potential and to make positive contributions to their communities. This sits so well with my Shrieval theme this year of preventing young people from becoming NEET (Not in Education, Employment and Training), and Katie Holmes the Hub Manager and her wonderful team and trustees deserve tremendous credit for what they have created for their local community. There was a very touching moment when one of the young people came up to me to specifically tell me how Katie through a number of one to one sessions, and by encouraging his involvement in the Hub, had changed his life.

Suzanne spent most of the evening in the kitchen, helping prepare pumpkin soup and cakes, whilst I was diligently carrying out quality control testing on the marsh-mallows!

Spelthorne in Bloom Awards.

One of my early engagements as High Sheriff was to attend the launch of this year’s Spelthorne in Bloom competition back in April. So some seven months later, Suzanne and I were delighted to return for the results with Grace one of my Police Cadets.

The initial event had been hosted by Squires and the Awards evening by Notcutts and all 12 awards were sponsored by local businesses which is a testament to both the commitment of local businesses to the Community and the hard work the Committee put in to ensure the success of the event which is now in its 35 year. Cllr John Doran, Mayor of Spelthorne, local MP, Lincoln Jopp, Chief Executive of Spelthorne Borough Council, Daniel Mouawad and Inspector Matthew Walton, Borough Commander Surrey Police, were joined by many members of the local community avidly awaiting the results.

Notcutts kindly provided some refreshments and the evening was expertly compered by Chairman of Spelthorne in Bloom, Nick Wood-Dow DL.

[picture is of all the winners from Stanwell]