Carmen Watson The High Sheriff of the West Midlands
Welcome
At Buckingham Palace on 10th March 2026, Miss Carmen Watson was invited by His Majesty the King to become the High Sheriff of the County of West Midlands.
On 31st March 2026, Miss Watson made her Declaration at the Crown Court in Birmingham in front of the Presiding Judge for the Midlands Circuit, The Honourable Mr Justice Choudhury KC and thus her Shrieval year commenced.
The High Sheriff serves as a representative of the Crown in the County and their duties include supporting the various elements of the Justice system, namely the Police and other Law Enforcement Agencies, the Judiciary, the Prison Service and the Probation Service. The High Sheriff also takes an active role in supporting and promoting the voluntary sector, particularly those organisations involved with crime reduction and social cohesion.
On this website, you will find further information about the history of the role of the High Sheriff and their current responsibilities, as well as some background on the current High Sheriff, Miss Carmen Watson. You will also find details of events and initiatives that the High Sheriff is involved with.
If you have any questions or need any further information, please do not hesitate to contact us. We are here to serve the community and are very happy to assist in any way we can.
High Sheriff Events
The High Sheriff is keen to engage with, support and promote Voluntary organisations across the West Midlands, particularly those working with young people to assist in crime reduction and social cohesion.
If you would like to invite the High Sheriff to an event, please send an invitation through the Events page.
Aching Arms
In May, I visited Aching Arms in Halesowen, a charity dedicated to supporting families who have experienced the devastating loss of a baby. Through the
Celebration of Lord Mayor of Coventry’s end of mayoral year
I was delighted to attend the Lord Mayor of Coventry’s end-of-Mayoral-year dinner, held at Windmill Village, in support of her chosen charity, the Heart of
Carers Trust Heart of England
It was a privilege to meet the team and several carers at the Heart of England Carers Trust in Coventry, whose President is HRH The
West Midlands Police and Crime Commission
During April, I had the pleasure of meeting with the West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner, Simon Foster, together with Natalie Queiroz MBE, Victims’ Advocate,
High Sheriff Awards
The High Sheriff can give Awards to recognise the work of individuals or community groups within the County.
The High Sheriff will be inviting nominations for Awards for 2026 – 2027 in September 2026 – please see the Awards page for how to complete a nomination.
Examples of previous awards are set out below.
Walsall Transition on Leaving Care Hub
Looked After Children has been a key area of focus for me during my Shrieval year and I have been incredibly fortunate to pay a
Community Payback team in West Mids Probation Services
I was delighted to visit the Community Payback team in Birmingham which is part of West Midlands Probation Services. The team do some vitally important
Bernadette Allen at St Basils
St Basils is both a Charity and a Housing Association with a track record of over 50 years of providing a holistic range of accommodation and support
WAITS SEEKERS Board
I have had a number of engagements with the WAITS organisation during the course of my Shrieval year. Women Acting In Todays Society is led
The original version of this website was created and funded by Douglas Wright MBE DL, High Sheriff of the West Midlands 2024-25. It has been updated by Mark Smith, High Sheriff for 2025-26 and Carmen Watson, High Sheriff for 2026-27.