The Mayor of Southampton will be called Lord Mayor after the city received a much-coveted award by Her Majesty the Queen.

Southampton has been granted Lord Mayoralty status as part of Jubilee Civic Honours competitions.

This means the Mayor of the city will be officially known as Lord Mayor.

Southampton City Council elected its 800th mayor earlier this week during a ceremony at the Guildhall.

Cllr Jacqui Rayment was sworn in on Tuesday, taking over the role from Cllr Alex Houghton.

"As someone born and raised in the city, becoming the 800th Mayor of Southampton this week was an absolute honour," she said.

"To now find out that I will be the first Lord Mayor of Southampton is incredibly humbling. On behalf of the people of Southampton I would like to thank Her Majesty the Queen for bestowing such a great honour on our amazing city."

Only two Lord Mayors have been appointed by the Queen in the 21st century. 

Southampton is the first English city to receive the honour since Exeter was granted the accolade in the Queen’s Golden Jubilee year of 2002. 

Cllr Satvir Kaur, leader of Southampton City Council, echoed the Mayor's feelings, adding: "The announcement today is especially significant as it comes in the same week that we have celebrated the appointment of Southampton’s 800th Mayor, and comes shortly before we expect to hear whether we will be appointed UK City of Culture 2025 later this month."

City status

As part of the announcement, Ministers also revealed the eight locations awarded city status.

Last run ten years ago to mark the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, this year, for the first time ever, the competition was open to applications from the Crown Dependencies and Overseas Territories, with the Falklands’ Stanley and Douglas of the Isle of Man among the winners.

The eight places who won the royal honour this year ahead of the Jubilee weekend are:

  • Bangor, Northern Ireland
  • Colchester, England
  • Doncaster, England
  • Douglas, Isle of Man
  • Dunfermline, Scotland
  • Milton Keynes, England
  • Stanley, Falkland Islands
  • Wrexham, Wales

Applications were opened last year and almost 40 locations from across the UK and beyond put forward their bid to become a city.

Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Steve Barclay said: “I am delighted that a record number of locations have been awarded the prestigious city status as part of Her Majesty The Queen's Platinum Jubilee Celebrations. 

"What was clear to me during the process of assessing each application was the pride that people felt for their communities, local cultural heritage and the Royal Family. 

“As we celebrate Her Majesty The Queen’s colossal contribution to society, I am thrilled that we are able to recognise some of the many places that make Britain great.

“It is also incredibly reflective of Her Majesty’s global outlook and years of international service that applicants from the Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies have been selected as winners for the first time.

“I look forward to the world coming together to show our pride and gratitude to Queen Elizabeth II on the Jubilee weekend.”

‘Letters Patent’ will now be prepared which will confer each of the awards formally and will be presented to winners later in the year. 

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