Sylvia Halkerston has been appointed as the Lord Dean of Guild of the City of Aberdeen.
She became a Burgess in 2009 and was appointed Lord Dean of Guild on 10th May 2022.
This appointment makes her the first woman to be in post in Aberdeen since the role of Dean of Guild was established in 1214.
The Lord Dean of Guild is the senior official that represents the Guildry of Burgesses, who are responsible for upholding the laws and customs of the burgh.
The Lord Dean of Guild plays a part in ceremonial and civic occasions such as Remembrance Sunday and the Kirking of the Council, whilst also representing the Aberdeen Guildry on the Court of Deans of Guild of Scotland.
The Court of Deans is a collective body to foster relationships across Scotland to share ideas to promote good community.
Prior to her appointment as the Lord Dean of Guild of the City of Aberdeen, Lord Dean, Sylvia Halkerston, established a career in Human Resource Management – working with organisations across a multitude of sectors.
She was the first recipient of the Top Cherry award for Outstanding Contribution in the field of HR.
She is also a recipient of the Regional Director of the Year Award presented by the Institute of Directors Scotland, and has been recognised by the Association of Scottish Businesswomen for Outstanding Contribution to Business.
Throughout her career, she has been responsible for developing and delivering numerous award-winning business initiatives with particular emphasis on supporting young people.
Lord Dean also served on several boards including the of University of Abertay and Robert Gordon University and the Scottish Government’s Developing Scotland’s Young Workforce Commission, under the chairmanship of energy tycoon Sir Ian Wood.
She currently sits on the Programme Board for The Scottish Government’s “Making Scotland’s Future – a recovery plan for manufacturing” initiative.
The Lord Provost of Aberdeen, Councillor David Cameron, said: “The Council welcomes the appointment by the Burgesses of Sylvia Halkertston as Lord Dean of Guild. This is a historic appointment for Aberdeen and marks the beginning of a new era.
“Lord Dean embodies the very essence of the role, acting as an ambassador and will undoubtedly take every opportunity to further the promotion of the City of Aberdeen.
Sylvia Halkerston, Lord Dean of Guild, said: “Being an organisation more then 800 years in existence, I am extremely proud and honoured to be installed as Lord Dean. My objective is to encourage Burgesses to engage with the city in meaningful ways living up to our motto ‘For Aberdeen’."