Cllr Michael Read - the 809th Mayor of Winchester
Cllr Michael Read was appointed as the new Mayor of Winchester at a Mayor Making Ceremony at the Winchester Guildhall. He officially took over the role from Cllr Chris Pines to become the 809th Mayor of Winchester; the second oldest Mayoralty in England.
Cllr Read is currently the Conservative representative for Denmead; where he lives with his wife, Jan. They have been married for 40 years and they have two children, Carl and Zoe.
During his term as Mayor, Cll Read's charities will be: The Hampshire and Isle of Wight Air Ambulance Service, The Rowans Hospice, and The Scout Association's Pinsent campsite and Solent Scout training centre at Shedfield.
Cllr Read's wife, Jan, is the Mayoress and the deputy Mayor this year is now Liberal Democrat member for St Bartholomew ward, Dominic Hiscock. The deputy Mayoress will be Dr Caroline Rubin.
After he was handed the keys to the city of Winchester, the keys to Abbey House, the Mayoral ring and the badge and chain of office, the new Mayor said: "I am deeply honoured to be asked to serve as Mayor of this ancient city. It is without a doubt a great privilege. I would like to thank Cllr Chris Pines who has allowed me to undertake a number of engagements over the past year. Chris and Denise (Cllr Pines' escort, Denise Baker) have given Jan and I a good grounding for the challenges which lay ahead.
"My motto for this year will be the three Cs - Community, Communication and Charity."
About the Mayor
He was born in Bradford, Yorkshire, but moved to Portsmouth at a young age, where he spent most of his childhood.
He has always enjoyed the adventure of outdoor life and as a young man he joined the Royal Marine Cadets where he became a Regimental Sergeant Major. He later joined the Scout movement to which he still maintains strong links.
He is currently Deputy City Commissioner for the Portsmouth district and in 2004 he received the coveted Silver Acorn award for exceptional service to the Scouting movement.
Cllr Read's links with the Scout movement were in evidence at the Mayor Making Ceremony - Harriet Belloti, a local young musician and member of the Winchester Explorer Scouts, was invited along to provide the music for the ceremony.
Cllr Read's working life started with an apprenticeship in the printing industry, before working his way up to become Company Director of the same firm.
He later joined the NHS, working at the Knowle Hospital for people with mental health problems until it closed in the early 1990s.
He then went on to working for Hampshire County Council until his retirement in 2003.
Cllr Read served on Denmead Parish Council from 1979 - 2002 and was elected as a City Councillor for Denmead in 1994.