A Lake District village has appointed its youngest ever mayor.
The role at Troutbeck, near Windermere, dates from 1780, when a Hunting Mayor was annually elected.
Many villages and hunts in the Lake District held annual Mayor’s Hunts, and the mayor had the job of organising the event and the entertainment afterwards.
The tradition, once widespread in Cumbria, has fallen by the wayside but is still kept alive in Troutbeck.
Now 17-year-old Hector George Westmoreland Nicholson, a year 13 student at Windermere School, has been elected as mayor.
He joined the school aged two years and nine months and the school said it was proud of his achievement.
It said: “Hector has loved the outdoors from day one and would always rather be out in the fields than sitting in the classroom. In fact, his junior school teachers remember his dislike of reading from a young age and the only way they could entice him was by reading Farmers’ Weekly rather than scheme reading books!
“Hector moved into the senior school with the same energy, and his PE teachers agree that he is a real inspiration and use him as the benchmark for everything a young man should be.
Hector has personal attributes and skills way beyond his years. He puts other people first and has genuine warmth for his fellow students. He is an honest and authentic young man who balances hard work and kindness.
“We wish him the best of luck as he leaves Windermere School, moving into his next stage and taking up his seat as mayor of a community in which he is well known for his smiles and helpfulness.”
