Fond farewell to Chris Heaton, past Chairman, Guardian and Executive Committee Member

This month Sheffield Assay Office bade a fond farewell to our previous Chairman, long-standing Executive Committee member and Guardian, Mr Chris Heaton.

To many of us Chris has always been here. He has been a solid rock quietly keeping us on the straight and narrow seemingly for ever – whilst this may be true in many ways every story starts with a beginning...

Chris started in the heady days of April 2007 not as a Guardian but as a Co-opted Consultant to the Executive Committee to assist with the vision and strategy around the impending re-location to Hillsborough from Portobello Street.  As is often the way having been co-opted the Committee quickly moved to make him a Guardian of The Standard of Wrought Plate within the Town of Sheffield and to formally elect him to Executive Committee in 2008. Although as the 2008 crash had a severe implication for hallmarking, we wonder if he regretted that decision – however we are glad he stayed and he was Chairman 2012 – 2015 and has been part of the Executive throughout his time with the office - so that’s over 17 years at the heart of our decision-making process. 

This includes his work as Chair of the Pensions and especially its move to a Master Trust. He has been a great help to three Chairmen, overseen the accounts and done great work for the staff in the pensions area to maximise employee benefit.  He has provided a wise head for the Assay Master.

During his time, Chris has done 135 marathons including 30 mountain marathons in a month for charity, run across the Gobi Desert, through Greenland and is one of the first people to cycle across the Empty Quarter Desert.  

Chairman Charles Turner DL said ‘Chris has been an amazing servant to the Sheffield Assay Office and he will be missed, Chris, thank you for your service’.

Chris was presented from the Chairman, Assay Master, Guardians and Staff of the Sheffield Assay Office with a piece of beautifully commissioned sterling silver by Jen Rickets, a saw pierced and engraved skyline featuring Sheffield Assay Office, Chris’s home, hills, a runner and a bike. Chris' wife Gina was invited as a surprise guest to the event.

Assay Master Ashley Carson said at the presentation "Chris has played an important role at the Assay Office, as a member of the Guardians and the Executive Committee, and also a Chairman. His contributions have been outstanding and he will certainly be greatly missed."

The Sheffield Assay Office was established in 1773, under an Act of Parliament and today the company assays and hallmarks the precious metals - silver, gold, platinum and palladium. Sheffield Assay Office is one of only four UK assay offices who all work to uphold the Hallmarking Act of 1973 and continue to ensure consumer protection for customers purchasing precious metals.

To find out more about the whole range of services offered by Sheffield Assay Office, such as our hallmarking and analytical services, please email us at info@assayoffice.co.uk or complete the contact form on our website at http://www.assayoffice.co.uk/contact-us ,

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