Who is the High Sheriff of the Isle of Wight?

Susie Sheldon, aged 52, took over as High Sheriff of the Isle of Wight on April 4th 2011 at a Declaration ceremony held at the Law Courts in Newport Isle of Wight. She has appointed John Mathews as her Under-Sheriff and Elizabeth Peace as the High Sheriff's Chaplain.

Susie lives with her husband Jamie at Kings Manor between Yarmouth and Freshwater where her Jamie’s family have been since his parents moved there in 1967.

Susie trained as an accountant in London and she still continues to practice, looking after a number of small companies at the same time as being fully involved in running the Farm, Farm Shop, Museum and holiday lets at Kings Manor. The Organic Farm is involved in a wide range of environmental and educational projects, hosting numerous school visits. The Sheldon family are extensively involved in all sports, especially sailing and she has been involved in youth training and sailing at both the Yarmouth Sailing Club and the Royal Solent Yacht Club since first coming to the Island in 1987. She has also been Treasurer of the Isle of Wight Pony Club and was responsible for re-introducing their Tetrathlon section from 1997.

She has a keen interest in young people with disabilities, both mental and physical and has served as a Trustee with the Jubilee Sailing Trust and the Fortune Centre of Riding Therapy.

In recent years she has been Chairman of the Local Access Forum and Master of the Isle of Wight Hunt and has been involved in a number of projects to help the rural and farming community. She has been chairman of the IOW Grand National and Ashey Scurry for the last ten years(competing in it herself for the first time last year) and has seen this event build on its success from year to year.

During her time as High Sheriff she intends to continue to support the many projects supported by the Shrevalty on the Isle of Wight but in this year of the Island Games one particular emphasis of her work will be on sport. Her other two priorities will rural communities and music.

For her uniform she is delighted to have been lent one by previous High Sheriff Judith Hammer and will also wear the ostrich feathers, cloak and silver shoe buckles given by another previous High Sheriff, Anne Springman for the use of Isle of Wight High Sheriffs in perpetuity.