The Office of High Sheriff
The Office of High Sheriff is at least 1,000 years old having its
roots in Saxon times before the Norman Conquest. It is the oldest
continuous secular Office under the Crown.
Originally the Office held many of the powers now vested in Lord
Lieutenants, High Court Judges, Magistrates, Local Authorities,
Coroners and even the Inland Revenue.
The Office of High Sheriff remained first in precedence in the Counties
until the reign of Edward VII when an Order in Council in 1908 gave
the Lord Lieutenant the prime Office under the Crown as the Sovereign's
personal representative. Lord Lieutenants were created in 1547 for
military duties in the Shires. The High Sheriff remains the Sovereign's
representative in the County for all matters relating to the Judiciary
and the maintenance of law and order.
Modern precendence is defined by a Royal Warrant of 1904, as amplified
by the Home Office Memorandum of 1928 whereby the High Sheriff takes
precedence in the County immediately after the Lord Lieutenant except
when precedence is deferred to the Lord Mayor, Mayor or Chairman
of the Local Authority when they are undertaking municipal business
in their own district.
Functions of the Office
High Sheriffs are responsible in the Counties of England and Wales
for duties conferred by the Crown through Warrant from the Privy
Council including: Attendance at Royal visits to the County; the
well being and protection of Her Majesty's High Court Judges when
on Circuit in the County and attending them in Court during the
legal terms; the annual appointment of an Under Sheriff; acting
as the Returning Officer for Parliamentary Elections in County constituencies;
responsibility for the proclamation of the accession of a new Sovereign;
and maintenance of the loyalty of subject to the Crown. In practice
some of those responsibilities are delegated to the professional
services, for example the protection of the judges and the maintenance
of law and order are in the hands of the Chief Constable of Police.
High Sheriffs are encouraged by The High Sheriffs' Association of
England and Wales to undertake duties to improve and sustain the
morale of personnel of voluntary and statutory bodies, particularly
those engaged in the maintenance and extension of law and order
and the entire criminal system. It is an independent non-political
Office which enables the holder to bring together a wide variety
of individuals and Office holders for the good of the community
a High Sheriff serves. The High Sheriff receives no remuneration
and no part of the expense of his year of Office falls on the public
purse. In recent years High Sheriffs in many parts of England and
Wales have been particularly active in the field of reduction of
crime and the development of an anti-crime culture, particularly
among young people, through its two Charities, DebtCred
and National
Crimebeat, and other similar initiatives.
The Sheriff has always been associated with keeping the Queen's
Peace. For that reason, visits to all the various courts and agencies
associated with the maintenance of Law and Order are very much part
of the role together with an interest in the work of Magistrates,
Coroners, juvenile and family courts, various forms of tribunal,
the Police, Fire and Ambulance services and voluntary organisations.
Crimebeat
The Charity aims to give youth organisations and young people an opportunity to help combat crime in the community. Its main objectives are to promote for the public benefit and in particular, for the young and for the elderly, a safer and better quality of life through the prevention of crime and the protection of people of all ages as well as their property.
Grants are made to help finance and support the plans and initiatives which are put forward by the young people. The High Sheriff normally nominates BYCA as his/her principal Charity.
The Sheriff’s Year
Selection
A High Sheriff is nominated by a selection panel.
The High Sheriff takes up appointment upon making a sworn declaration in terms dictated by the Sheriff’s Act 1887. The appointment is for one year only, except in the event of something untoward happening to the High Sheriff’s expected successor, in which case a High Sheriff must remain in office until the appointment of a successor is executed.
High Sheriffs are now encouraged by the Association of High Sheriffs of England and Wales to undertake duties to improve and sustain the morale of personnel of voluntary and statutory bodies engaged in the maintenance and extension of law and order and the entire criminal system. It is an independent, non-political office which enables the holder to bring together a wide variety of individuals and office holders for the good of the community a High Sheriff serves. In recent years High Sheriffs in many parts of England and Wales have been particularly active in the field of reduction of crime and the development of an anti-crime culture, particularly among young people.
The High Sheriff receives no remuneration or expenses.
Nominations for High Sheriff
Nominations to the Office of High Sheriff are dealt with through
the presiding Judge of the appropriate Circuit and the Privy Council
or consideration by the Sovereign in Council. The annual nominations
of three prospective High
Sheriffs for each County are made in a meeting of the Lords
of the Council in the Queen's Bench Division of the High Court of
Justice presided over by the Lord Chief Justice on the 12th November
in each year. Subsequently the selection of New High Sheriffs is
made annually in a meeting with the Privy Council by the Sovereign
when the custom of 'pricking' the appointee's name with a bodkin
is perpetuated.
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