A new High Sheriff of Greater Manchester has been chosen by Her Majesty the Queen.
At a special ceremony at Buckingham Palace, Lorraine Worsley-Carter MBE D L has been formally chosen as the next High Sheriff of Greater Manchester. In accordance with ancient tradition, Her Majesty took a bodkin (a blunt needle) and ceremonially pricked a hole through Lorraine’s name on a specially prepared parchment known as ‘The Lites’.
This unusual method dates back to the reign of Elizabeth I. It is understood that she was interrupted during her needlework to appoint a High Sheriff and, having nothing to write with, pricked a hole through the name on the parchment with a bodkin.
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The Office of High Sheriff is an unpaid, independent non-political Royal appointment for a single year. In England, Wales and Northern Ireland, the High Sheriff is theoretically the sovereign's judicial representative in the county.
Mrs Worsley-Carter and her husband recently returned to live in Stockport, Lorraine’s birthplace, after a number of years in Salford Quays. She is the owner of her family media business Countess Publicists, as well as a theatre and book reviewer, and travel writer.
Lorraine is a former freelance broadcaster, mainly with the BBC, as well as film editor with Granada Television. In 1998, she was awarded the MBE for “outstanding service to broadcasting and the community”, and became a Deputy Lieutenant of Greater Manchester in 2008.
Additionally, she is also part of the Greater Manchester Lieutenancy Honours committee, which exists to encourage the people of Greater Manchester to nominate outstanding individuals from the community for an honour.
Lorraine’s care for and involvement with the communities of Greater Manchester and further afield have seen her undertake the role of CSV’s Regional Manager, line-managing social action desks across the ten BBC radio stations of Northern England.
She has also been Chair of the Prince’s Trust for Greater Manchester, and is a former Manchester Magistrate, NED on both the Stockport and Greater Manchester Strategic Health Authorities, as well as an Independent Assessor with the Department of Culture, Media and Sport.
In 2020, she was recognised as one of the top 100 female entrepreneurs in the f:Entrepreneur #ialso100 campaign, a celebration of inspirational businesses led by women in the UK.
She is currently Trustee of F.A.B. Family and Babies Charity, an Ambassador for Proud and Loud Arts and for the Pankhurst Trust, and is a member of DANC MANC Disabled Artists Networking Community.
Lorraine, who will succeed the present High Sheriff, Diane Hawkins, said: " I am truly honoured and humbled to be appointed to take the role of High Sheriff of Greater Manchester 2022-2023, especially during Her Majesty’s Platinum Jubilee Year. It is a huge privilege to be the custodian of this ceremonial role during such an historic year.
"Like all the High Sheriffs of Greater Manchester before me, I will support the Royal Family, the judiciary, the police and law enforcement, the emergency services, prison and probation services, local authorities, charities and volunteers from all sectors of our community.
"Volunteers are the bedrock and very fabric of our dynamic county. Greater Manchester has some 2.8 million people living here, so it will inevitably be a busy year!
"I’m also keen to help raise the profile of the role of High Sheriff in the County even higher, and to help schoolchildren better understand what this, the oldest Royal appointment, is all about."
Raising the profile of charities across Greater Manchester is particularly important to Lorraine. She added: "The role of High Sheriff goes back so many years, to 1066 and beyond. It is very important to me to carry on the great work of raising the profile of Greater Manchester and all the people who work so hard in our community here.
"I've met so many people working in charities in my roles to date and I know there are so many charities that I don't know about yet. I can't wait to meet them and help them to raise their profiles, too."
Lorraine’s late father worked for railways within Manchester all his professional life and, considering her love of travel and travel writing, she has chosen as her Chaplain the Reverend Michael Roberts, Railway Mission Chaplain to the Rail Network and British Transport Police for North West England.
The Installation Ceremony will take place on 22nd April at the Lowry Theatre in Salford.
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