Lord Mayor of Bristol

Introduction

The Lord Mayor is the first Citizen of the City and County of Bristol. There have been Mayors in Bristol since 1216 and a Lord Mayor since 1899, following Queen Victoria's decision to grant Bristol this privilege. This page seeks to answer the questions people frequently have about the Lord Mayor.

Find out more about the role of the Lord Mayor and follow him online:

• Lord Mayor's diary (pdf, 26 KB) (opens new window) - public engagements for the next two weeks
• Bristol Lord Mayor: twitter

You can add your own photos with the Lord Mayor at events to his Flickr group: The Lord Mayor of Bristol and the Mansion House.

The Lord Mayor, Lady Mayoress and Deputy Lord Mayor of Bristol

The Right Honourable Lord Mayor of Bristol is Councillor Faruk Choudhury

Lord Mayor biography (pdf, 28 KB) (opens new window)

The Lady Mayoress is Mrs Shilpi Choudhury.

Lady Mayoress biography (pdf, 22 KB) (opens new window)

The new Deputy Lord Mayor is Cllr Peter Main and his consort is Mr James Rampton.

The duties of the Lord Mayor

The Lord Mayor devotes most of his/her time to the promotion of the city, key initiatives of the council and supporting a wide range of Bristol based organisations. In carrying out this role, the Lord Mayor will carry out approximately 800 engagements a year. These engagements cover a wide spectrum of events from major royal visits to small community group meetings and local charity events.

The Lord Mayor also chairs the meeting of the full council - when all councillors meet together.

The post of the Lord Mayor of Bristol is different to the Mayor of London and many European city mayors in that it is a ceremonial post which does not carry direct power. Unlike these other mayors, Lord Mayors are not directly elected by the people.

The Lord Mayor, as first citizen of Bristol is the person that typically welcomes important visitors and dignitaries to the city. However, royal visitors to the city are organised and welcomed by the Queen's representative, The Lord Lieutenant.

Electing the Lord Mayor

The Lord Mayor is elected annually in May when all councillors meet together at the Annual Council Meeting. The Lord Mayor has to be a councillor and is chosen by the other councillors who serve on Bristol City Council. The Lord Mayor continues to be a member of the council during their term of office.

Length of service

The term of office for the Lord Mayor is one year. It begins once the 'Mayor-making' ceremony has taken place at the Annual Council Meeting in mid-May. There is no limit for how many times somebody may serve as the Lord Mayor of Bristol.

The Lord Mayor's charities

The Lord Mayor is Patron of or connected with hundreds of charities within Bristol and assists them as much as possible.

Every year, the Lord Mayor's Christmas Appeal for Children helps hundreds of children in Bristol with vouchers for food, toys and clothing. The appeal is run by Rotary, Round Table and Lions Clubs with the Lord Mayor as the appeal's patron.

At home with the Lady Mayoress

Members of the public are very welcome to come and enjoy a cup of tea at the Lord Mayor's official residence, the Mansion House, with the Lady Mayoress.

At Home with the Lady Mayoress takes place on the first Wednesday of each month (excluding August, December and January) at 3pm. Both individual and group bookings are possible and pre-booking is essential by contacting the Lord Mayor's Office by email rachel.boast@bristol.gov.uk.