Mrs Sue Middleton (formerly Sue Rawle) is the new Forest of Dean Verderer. Photograph by Linda Wright

A former student at Monmouth School for Girls is the new Forest of Dean Verderer.
Mrs Sue Middleton (formerly Sue Rawle) is one of the four Verderers of the Forest of Dean as she joins Senior Verderer Bob Jenkins, Ian Standing and Rich Daniels.
Sue was elected to the Forest’s ancient court of verderers in a ceremony at Gloucester Cathedral on 1st March.
A pupil at Monmouth from 1970 to 1979, Sue was elected by a show of hands from eligible Gloucestershire residents and succeeds Verderer Maurice Bent, who died in October last year.
The election was supervised by the High Sheriff of Gloucestershire, Mrs Jane Tufnell, on behalf of the Queen.
The Forest’s ancient court of verderers has a judicial role to administer the ancient laws of the Forest and to protect the ‘vert and venison’ – the flora and fauna.
“It’s a wonderful honour to be the new Forest of Dean Verderer because the Forest of Dean is a very special area,” said Sue, who grew up in Coleford, and whose two brothers were educated Monmouth School for Boys.
“I am now part of the four verderers who will meet quarterly in the Verderers’ Court at the Speech House Hotel, and I am sure we will always have lots of discuss.”
The court consists of four verderers who are appointed for life; an election is held each time a verderer dies.
Sue left Monmouth after her A levels to read a degree in Psychology at Manchester University.
She heads up the Foresters’ Forest National Lottery Heritage Fund Landscape Partnership Programme, which has enabled many projects to conserve cultural history, historical infrastructure and many conservation projects in the Dean. Sue is also vice-chair of the Forest of Dean Local History Society.