New Mayor of Sleaford elected for coming year

At the Annual Meeting of Sleaford Town Council held on May 21, Coun Snookes was elected for the new mayoral year 2025/2026.

She thanked councillors for their unanimous support, saying: “I will work hard and do my best for you and the community.”

She replaces outgoing Mayor, Councillor David Suiter.

Councillor Dave Darmon was also unanimously elected as Vice Chairman of the Council and the Deputy Mayor for 2025/2026.

Speaking to the Sleaford Standard afterwards, Coun Snookes said she felt “honoured and humbled” on achieving her new role, admitting she did not expect to become mayor when she joined the council in June 2022. “I certainly didn’t think it would happen so quickly,” she confessed.

She becomes half of the rare husband and wife teams of councillors to have both served as Mayor of Sleaford, having served as consort to her husband, Coun Adrian Snookes, when he was mayor in 2019-20.

She has also been Deputy Mayor for the past year, so she accepts she knows much of what to expect in her year of office.

The member for Westholme Ward said: “I would like to represent the town and council at as many functions as I am invited to, as well as raise money for my two chosen charities.”

These are to be confirmed but will be locally based. Coun Snookes has several ideas for fundraising events for her charities, as well as the now traditional Burns Night and Quiz Night events.

Born in Sleaford, she has lived in the area for most of her life, with her three children and four grandchildren all living in the county too. The retired teacher worked at Kesteven and Grantham Girls School for 17 years but she has continued in education as a foundation governor on behalf of the church at William Alvey School for the last nine years.

"I go into school every week,” she said. “I am also on the Parochial Church Council at St Denys’ Church and attend every Sunday, getting involved in church activities.

"My grandchildren take up a lot of my spare time, as I look after my three-year-old granddaughter when her parents are at work. But when I do get time I love cooking, reading, crosswords and going for walks.”