The High Sheriff of Cambridgeshire
Supporting, promoting & thanking the many people who serve our community
across Cambridgeshire
Each year, the King appoints a resident of Cambridgeshire to serve as his High Sheriff, as the Monarch has done for every county of England & Wales for nearly 1,500 years. The High Sheriff is His Majesty’s second most senior personal representative in the county, after his Lord-Lieutenant.
The appointment runs from late March or early April, for one year. It is an independent, voluntary and non-political role. High Sheriffs receive no payment, expenses or support from the public purse.
About
This year’s High Sheriff
The High Sheriff for 2025–26 is Hon. Frances Stanley DL, who lives near Newmarket.
Frances is Executive Chairman of the National Horseracing Museum, which is based in Newmarket. She has led and been involved with many fundraising and community projects, including for Palace House (the Heritage Centre for Horseracing and Sporting Art), the East Anglia’s Children’s Hospices, Breast Cancer Haven Trust, the Blood Bank (NHS), Countryside Alliance, and the Charity Race Day in aid of Racing Welfare.
Frances is a patron of VIVA! Arts & Community Group in Soham, and chairs a committee for Presents Galore, the Christmas Fair held at Newmarket Racecourse in aid of Cambridge Children’s Hospital and the National Horseracing Museum.
Frances lives at New England Stud near Newmarket where she and her husband Peter breed thoroughbred horses and live with their three children.
Focus
What does the High Sheriff do?
Despite wearing traditional clothes, the High Sheriff’s role is modern and forward-thinking, focussed on some of the most important services and urgent needs across Cambridgeshire.
Each High Sheriff has their own priorities for their year in office. But there are some common themes that all High Sheriffs focus on, listed below, and the High Sheriff is active in visiting all these areas and the people working and volunteering in them, promoting and supporting their efforts, and thanking them on behalf of the community and people of Cambridgeshire:
Supporting the
Justice system
The four key elements of the ‘justice system’ are the police, courts, prisons and probation service; the High Sheriff’s focus on these recognises their traditional role in centuries past (e.g. the Sheriff of Nottingham in Robin Hood’s time, and how Americans still use the word ‘sheriff’).
The High Sheriff (right) meeting the Director of HM Prison Peterborough (centre) together with the Lord-Lieutenant (left).
Supporting the
Uniformed Services
This comprises members of the fire, ambulance and air ambulance services, alongside other uniformed services like St John’s Ambulance.
The High Sheriff watching preparations for a simulated accident training session at the Cambridgshire Fire and Rescue Training Centre, where she also met the young recruits in training.
Supporting our many
Charities and voluntary organisations
Hundreds of local charities and voluntary organisations are active in Cambridgeshire, focused on a wide range of needs, and tens of thousands of residents work or volunteer for these vital services.
The High Sheriff meeting representatives of many charities and community groups in Peterborough, discussing the challenges they face and how they are meeting them.
Attending
Civic Functions
An important part of the High Sheriff’s role is to attend Royal Visits; to support communities across Cambridgeshire; to represent the community at County, City and Town Council events such as the appointment of new Mayors; to place wreaths at Remembrance Day services; to attend events marking national occasions; and to make national proclamations.
The High Sheriff with the Mayor of Cambridge’s mace-bearer and Beadles at the annual Reach village fair, which has taken place for over 800 years
Social Media
Recent Posts
Follow the High Sheriff of Cambridgeshire on Instagram, LinkedIn or X to see what she has been up to — from community visits to supporting local charities and celebrating the county’s unsung heroes.
Instagram: @highsheriffcambs
LinkedIn: High Sheriff of Cambridgeshire
X: @HSheriffCambs
Activity
Attending your event
The High Sheriff is keen to attend as many community, charity and civic events as possible, subject to other diary commitments and appropriateness.
If you would like to invite the High Sheriff to attend your event, please email cambs@highsheriffs.com or use the contact form below.
High Sheriff’s Awards
Each year, the High Sheriff makes awards (in the form of a paper certificate) to 20-40 people who have gone ‘above and beyond’ their service to the community or to local good causes.
These are usually given at an event hosted by the relevant charity or organisation, so the person’s work can be publicly acknowledged.
The awards are decided by the High Sheriff alone, but anyone can nominate potential candidates, by emailing cambs@highsheriffs.com.
High Sheriff’s Fund
Each year, the High Sheriff’s Fund makes grants/donations of up to £5,000 to a number of charities and voluntary organisations based in Cambridgeshire.
The Fund is administered by the Cambridgeshire Community Foundation. For more information on how to donate to it, or to apply for a grant from it, please visit cambscf.org.uk/high-sheriff-25-26/
