Cllr. Anja Schaefer was appointed as Buckingham’s new Town Mayor, at the annual Mayor Making ceremony, after being voted by other members of the council. Cllr. Anja Schaefer said that: “It was a great honour to be made the Mayor of Buckingham and wonderful that so many people were able to be at the Mayor Making to celebrate with us. I look forward to serving the people of Buckingham as their mayor in the next 12 months.”
Mayor Making is a formal ceremony that confirms the Council’s choice as Mayor and Deputy Mayor of the Town. This year, the ceremony took place on Friday 2nd June 2023 inside Buckingham Community Centre. The Town Council was joined by several dignitaries, including the Deputy Lord Lieutenant, Carolyn Cumming and Buckinghamshire Council Vice Chair, Mimi Harker. Mayors from neighbouring towns Winslow, Brackley, Banbury, Aylesbury, Leighton Linslade and Milton Keynes all joined in the celebrations.
Cllr. Ade Osibogun was also appointed Deputy Mayor, has been a Councillor for the last two years and is a dual-qualified lawyer, educator and arbitrator.
£2,000 was raised for the Mayor’s Charities 2022 – 2023, which remain as the Jedidiah Project and Buckingham Food Bank.
This year’s community awards were given to:
Honorary Freeman
- Mike Smith for his many years of service to the town.
- Barbara Farmer for her 35 years of service as Buckingham’s Mace Bearer.
Friend of Buckingham
- Mr Tony Mayston for his many contributions to the town: school governor, Trustee for Buckingham Community Centre, Treasurer of the Buckingham Society, and involvement in the Buckingham Community Plan.
- Simon Wells for his sterling work on developing North Bucks Carers, managing the Young Carers Youth Club and for his work on supporting local families.
- Mary Simons for her work on developing the town’s Traders’ Association, her work with the Pontio Group, and the Fair-Trade Steering Group.
- Derek Croft for his many years of work at The Buckingham Secondary School.
- Rosemary Frohock for her help in standing in as Mace Bearer and for her work with the Scout organisation.
- Russell Cross for his years of service as Buckingham’s Town Crier.
Arts and Sports Award
- Buckingham Art for All for being a strong and vibrant local group that encourages and supports local artists.
Natural Environment and Climate Champion Award
- The Canal Society for their years of service in improving and renovating the canal.
Voluntary Community and Social Enterprise Award
- The Community Lunch is held every week and welcomes local residents for a free lunch. It has also welcomed the Ukrainian people staying in the town and the residents currently staying at a local hotel.
Mayor’s Prize for Outstanding Young Person
- Chantel Tunks for her contributions to the Youth Club and assistance with weekly bingo sessions throughout the Covid-19 lockdowns.
Cllr. Margaret Gateley was also awarded a crystal vase, as a mark of her service as past Mayor of Buckingham 2021 – 2023.
Cheques were also given out to the Mayor’s Charities for 2021 – 2023: Jedidiah UK and Buckingham Food Bank, who were each awarded £1,000 from fundraising projects and collections at events throughout the last year.
Grants were also awarded to 17 local groups by the Town Council, with members of the groups invited to attend and receive their charity cheques.
