Uncategorized Archives - Page 4 of 102

Proud Winners of A Kings Award for Voluntary Service – The Big Leaf Foundation.

5 June 2025

I was thrilled to hear that The Big Leaf Foundation had secured the prestigious Kings Award. I have been acquainted with the charity and its wonderful founders Katye Cable and Vicki Felgate since the early days of the charity eight years ago. Their selfless commitment to helping displaced people with their incredible staff and volunteers is awe-inspiring. I have attended a number of their events, heard many harrowing stories and met many young people who have endured terrible hardships; but now have smiles on their faces and happier futures to look forward to thanks to The Big Leaf Foundation.

My earliest involvement was to buy them a football kit so they could form a team and play against local teams. Although they came from many different places and spoke many different languages, when they put their football kit on they became one, united and teammates, high fiving each other. Such a small thing but with such a huge impact. It was a very enjoyable evening and the award is so richly deserved.

Find out more about The Big Leaf Foundation HERE.

Surrey Care Trust – Swingbridge Boats, Welcome the ‘Maggie G’.

5 June 2025

The Shrievalty has long been proud supporters of the Surrey Care Trust and the Swingbridge Boats and Suzanne and I were delighted to welcome the third boat to their fleet. Called the ‘Maggie G’, it joined ‘Swingbridge Tranquillity’ and ‘Swingbridge Endeavour’ as welcoming spaces on the water for people of all ages and walks of life, from young people building confidence and resilience, to volunteers working together on environmental and conservation projects along our beautiful waterways. It was a lovely afternoon on the Wey at Send with the Trustees, staff, volunteers and supporters all welcoming the ‘Maggie G’ being launched.

As is tradition, beer was poured over her bows, adeptly undertaken by Zoe Franklin, the local MP. Many congratulations to John Downing (CEO) and everyone associated with the Swingbridge Boat initiative.

Find out more about The Surrey Care Trust HERE.

National Volunteers Day - North Guildford Food Bank

A Visit to North Guildford Food Bank During National Volunteers Week.

3 June 2025

This week is National Volunteers’ Week and I was therefore delighted to be invited, with my wife Suzanne, to see the great work North Guildford Food Bank undertakes to support the local community.

Now in their 13th year of operation, they are dealing well with the ever increasing demand for their services, thanks to the generous food and financial donations from the local community and the dedication of their team of over 100 volunteers who willingly give their time to help those in need in Guildford and surrounding villages.

2024 saw an increase in demand for food parcels of over 25% on the previous year and the high level of demand has continued into 2025. When speaking to Jessica (Food Bank Manager) and Geoff (Chair of Trustees) it is clear that clients, volunteers and the staff team feel incredibly grateful and blessed by the generosity of the Guildford community in supporting this ongoing vital support to so many households.

We greatly enjoyed talking with a number of the volunteers who were all extremely dedicated in preparing the food parcels. On average 45 parcels are prepared each week, but this can rise to closer to 200 around Christmas. There is always a need for both financial and food donations to sustain their activities, and details of how to help can be found here https://northguildfordfoodbank.co.uk/food-donations/

British Empire Medals Investiture at Loseley House.

30 May 2025

It was an honour for Suzanne and I to join the Lord Lieutenant at the magnificent Loseley House last week, where he presented eight residents of Surrey with British Empire Awards (BEM’s), on behalf of HM The King which were announced in the 2025 New Years Honours List.

The award is in recognition of their exemplary contribution to their community and the difference their efforts make to other people’s lives. We very much enjoyed listening to the individual citations, dictated by Vice Lord Lieutenant, Mary Cresswell and after posing for official photographs we had the opportunity to talk to the recipients and their proud families themselves. Congratulations all and I join the Lord Lieutenant in thanking you for your contributions.

The Award Presentation at Losley house by HM Lord-Lieutenant of Surrey

Memorial Day at The Brookwood American Cemetery

25 May 2025

Suzanne and I were invited to attend the Memorial Day at the American Cemetery at Brookwood. The Lord Lieutenant gave one of the tribute readings as did the newly appointed US Ambassador to the UK, Warren A Stephens. Current Military personal, veterans and relatives of those who gave their lives were in attendance and wreathes were laid by representatives of the many countries and organisations participating in the commemoration event.

My two police cadets, Grace and Imogen, were in attendance with other representatives from the Police.

You can learn more about the American Cemetery HERE

Challengers – ‘Angels’ Helping Children with Complex Needs in Education.

24 May 2025

Suzanne and I joined the Lord Lieutenant at the official launch of their expanded 555 service aimed at helping the many children with complex needs that are falling through the gaps in the education system due to a lack of specialist school places or exclusions linked to their disability.

We heard brave personal stories from two mothers of the strain it puts on families which cannot get the support they need to enable their children to attend school. Challengers were described by them as “Angels” for the support they gave by welcoming their children and providing some respite for their families.

Sadly there are around 250 young people with additional needs in Surrey that are out of education currently as there are no suitable places for them.

Gen Dearman, her wonderful team and the board of trustees are indeed all angels and need more people to support them in providing a life-changing service that is so desperately needed.

Stripey Stork – 7,199 Children Supported this Year so Far!

24 May 2025

I have always been a great supporter of local businesses getting involved with the community within which they are based and as Chair of Guildford Philanthropy we engaged with 44 local firms becoming our Corporate Ambassadors. I was therefore delighted to visit Stripey Stork in Reigate, a fantastic charity, which as a baby bank collects and redistributes baby and children’s items to families in Surrey and Croydon who are experiencing hardship, ensuring they have the essentials they need. Last year an opportunity arose for them to lease an adjoining building which would enable them to expand the help they can provide to the local community.

Helped by a National Lottery grant and the Community Foundation for Surrey, local businesses then made the project viable. Unum, based in Dorking agreed to cover the first year rent cost and Overbury completed the transformation of the warehouse in an amazing six weeks after assembling a team of skilled sub-contractors. As a result Stripey Stork already this year have helped 7,199 children. Suzanne and I enjoyed meeting the team of volunteers who help sort through the donations of goods received and make the bespoke packs that go to local families that need these essential supplies.

I had the privilege of cutting the ribbon at the new facility with Founder and CEO, Nicola Dawes, with all those that had helped make it happen there to see the result of a great collaboration between businesses and a local charity.

SATRO – Construction Skills Classroom.

21 May 2025

Suzanne and I visited a Construction Skills Classroom – part of SATRO’s Vocational Construction Skills programme which delivers practical, hands-on skills to small groups in mainstream, alternative provision, pupil referral units and special needs schools across Surrey and the surrounding counties. Their tutors, who have experience in the industry, teach, mentor and inspire young people in vocational construction and employability skills and increases their chances of progressing to further study or into work. The course is suitable for students interested in careers in the construction industry, those re-engaging in their education and for those learning independent living skills.

It was a very appropriate visit, hot on the heels of the Conference on Monday to address the NEET Crisis, and indeed SATRO are one of the organisations involved in the process. Suzanne and I were very impressed and encouraged by what we saw at the classroom, which was hosted at the Inclusive Education Trust in Leatherhead, and it was great to see first-hand an example of what was already being done to help young people to get on the right path for their future.

SATRO’s Chief Executive – Andrew Whitby-Collins said:

“We were delighted to welcome the High Sheriff to one of our Construction Skills classrooms today. The students proudly showed him their carpentry projects and talked about the skills they are developing.

“The High Sheriff’s theme for his year recognises the importance of building self-confidence and developing practical skills to open up more opportunities for young people and reduce the risk of becoming NEET (Not in Education, Employment or Training) in Surrey. Our programme plays a key role in raising aspirations and helping students gain the experience and confidence they need to succeed.”

“We are very grateful to the High Sheriff for raising awareness of SATRO’s purpose and the importance of creating opportunities for young people.”

Find out more about SATRO HERE

‘Next Steps for NEET’s’ Conference 2025

20 May 2025

Following the publication of a report I commissioned at the beginning of my term as High Sheriff in March – ‘Unseen Surrey – An Exploratory Overview of the NEET Crisis’; a conference to discuss it’s findings and next steps took place yesterday at The University of Surrey.

‘Next Steps for NEET’s’ – focussed on bringing together the various groups working to reduce the number of young people Not in Education, Employment or Training (NEETs), including representatives from local government, politicians, education and healthcare providers, police, charity and voluntary organisations and some past High Sheriffs, with a view to encouraging collaboration and the sharing of knowledge, data, experiences and ideas to hopefully provide a joined-up strategy to tackle the NEET issue going forward.

Keynote speeches were delivered by myself as High Sheriff, and Tim Oliver, Leader of Surrey County Council, and the conference was expertly curated by the team at CBE Research (The Centre for Britain and Europe at the University of Surrey) who produced the report, led by Professor Amelia Hadfield.

After an initial review of the findings, the conference split into three breakout groups, guided by presenters, facilitators and rapporteurs to have a collective deep dive into specific topics, sharing current practices and frustrations and developing ideas for pilot studies and co-ordinated action going forward. I was greatly encouraged by the enthusiasm and engagement in the rooms, and the desire to create a community of practice going forward to build on these discussions and encourage further collaboration.

A huge thank you to The University of Surrey for hosting the event and to everyone involved for their contributions.

‘Next Steps for NEET”s’ – Initiated by The High Sheriff of Surrey. Hosted by The University of Surrey and CBE Research

The Voluntary Police Cadet Attestation Ceremony

17 May 2025

I was delighted to attend the Voluntary Police Cadet Attestation Ceremony on Saturday May 17^th which was held at the University of Surrey. Suzanne and I heard from Helen Hartley, Head of Volunteering at Surrey Police, about the various activities the cadets had been involved in over the past year; which included action days with army cadets, time with the Police Rapid Response teams, Dog Teams, Air Ambulance, riot simulations, and testing shopkeepers adherence to the law on selling blades and alcohol to young people.

The cadets clearly enjoy their training and although many are considering a future career in the Police Force, it is not a requirement nor expected when the cadets join. The attestation is the cadets collectively reciting a declaration that they will attend meetings regularly, participate in unit activities, wear their uniform with pride, and advance their education and training to prepare themselves to be of service to their community.