City's 745th mayor is sworn in for the year (From The Wiltshire Gazette and Herald)

City's 745th mayor is sworn in for the year

FORMER teacher, social worker, child-care officer and keen musician Patrick Paisey was sworn in as Salisbury's 745th mayor, in a colourful and historic ceremony in the city's St Thomas's Church on Saturday.

Mr Paisey, deputy mayor for the past year, took over the office from Jeremy Nettle at a ceremony attended by civic leaders from all parts of the county and from Salisbury's twin city of Saintes, in France.

His nomination as mayor brought laughter from the hundreds of guests watching the ceremony, as he was proposed by a former pupil, Councillor Paul Sample, who remarked that, as his teacher, Mr Paisey had frequently told him to "Shut up" and would no doubt continue to do so now he was mayor.

Mr Sample said Mr Paisey, a Conservative councillor for St Mark's and Stratford ward, was a man of many talents and had been a friend for many years.

Mr Paisey was born and bred in Wiltshire and in 1966 went to teach at Tidworth, before spending 13 years as a senior teacher at St Edmund's School.

He is a life-long member of the Salvation Army and for many years worked as a social worker and child-care officer in London's East End.

An enthusiastic musician, he played for many years with Salisbury Orchestral Society and has been bandmaster with the city's Salvation Army Band. He is a member and former president of Salisbury Rotary Club and has been a lay member of the church for more than 25 years, being active in parish duties at St Francis' Church, St Lawrence at Stratford-sub-Castle and at the Stratford Court residential home.

He was elected to Wiltshire county council for St Martin's ward in 1989, became a district councillor in 1999 and was chairman of the district council last year.

His wife, Mary, a former headteacher at La Retraite and Swan School, Salisbury, and a former senior lecturer at Sarum College, will be his mayoress.

In his first speech as mayor, Mr Paisey congratulated outgoing mayor Jeremy Nettle and his wife, Sue, and said it would be a difficult task to follow them.

He said his mayoral appeal would be the South Wiltshire Advocacy Service (Swan), which is soon to open new offices in Milford Street.

He said there were many vulnerable people in society with various difficulties, and they needed help to survive in today's society.

"This is where Swan comes in," he added.

Mr Paisey's deputy mayor will be fellow St Mark's and Stratford councillor Sheila Warrander.

Procession keeps up tradition

CROWDS lined the streets on Saturday to watch the colourful and historic civic procession from Salisbury Guildhall to St Thomas's church, as the city's Charter Trustees elected a mayor for the coming year.

Led by the Central Southern Fellowship Band and the city's macebearers, carrying the three silver maces, the procession comprised civic leaders from all parts of Wiltshire, Charter Trustees in their red gowns with black hats, county and local dignitaries and a delegation of civic leaders from Salisbury's twin French city, Saintes.

The procession, of more than 120 people, walked along New Canal into High Street and then into St Thomas's Church for the mayor-making ceremony.

The mayoral party - retiring mayor and mayoress Jeremy and Sue Nettle and mayor-elect Patrick Paisey and his wife, Mary - entered the church to a fanfare by musicians from the Central Southern Fellowship Band.

After the ceremony, nearly 300 people made their way from the church to the Guildhall for a civic reception hosted by the new mayor and mayoress.