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Please see below letter of condolence which the Lord Dean has sent on behalf of the Burgesses of Guild to His Majesty the King

We are pleased to announce that our Lord Dean, Sylvia Halkerston has been awarded an Honorary Degree, Doctor of Business Administration, from Robert Gordon University.

Professor Steve Olivier, Principal and Vice-Chancellor of RGU, comments: “Sylvia is an ardent ambassador of the North East of Scotland and the work of our region’s private and public sectors. She has contributed significantly to both sectors throughout her long and successful career and continues to play a key role in the region’s business and civic community.

“Sylvia retired from the University’s Board of Governors after eight years serving as a Governor and during that time helped to steer the strategic direction of the University in making a significant contribution to economic, social and cultural development in the North East of Scotland. I am delighted that she is now continuing to make a positive impact in our region which we are recognising with an honorary degree.”

Link to acceptance speech by Lord Dean of Guild:

We are very pleased to confirm that our Lord Dean, Colin Taylor was installed as Lord President of the Court of Deans of Scotland at the AGM of the Court of Deans, held in Arbroath on Friday 29^th April.  Below are some photos of the outgoing Lord President, Scott Williamson, Lord Dean of Dundee, handing over the chain to Colin at the end of an excellent dinner attended by most Guildries in Scotland.   Colin was accompanied at the AGM and dinner by his wife Marjorie, Sylvia Halkerston, Senior Assessor, and past Dean Fred Dalgarno (who is a Past Lord President).

Colin is proud to be appointed to represent Aberdeen, it’s important however that this comes about because the Court of Deans works on a rota basis and it’s Aberdeen’s turn this year to take on the Lord President’s role.  

The programme dictates that the next AGM of the Court of Deans will be hosted by the Guildry of the Lord President which means Aberdeen in April or May 2023. We will announce plans on the website once we have further information.

On Sunday 27th March the Lord Dean assisted Lord Provost Barney Crockett with the unveiling of a memorial stone at the Church of St. Nicholas, to recognise and thank Citizens of the city and Key Workers in particular who contributed much during recent times when the pandemic caused many restrictions.        
The stone was crafted and created by fellow Burgess, Barry Mackland and his skilled team at Memorial Specialists in Mugiemoss Road.  
This is an example of Burgesses’ contribution to the city, thanks to those in the group photograph who attended.

It was a long wait to finally be able to admit new Burgess along with 10 from the Incorporated Trades at a specially convened Council meeting, followed by a Civic Reception kindly provided by the Lord Provost and the City Council. Our thanks to them for providing the excellent hospitality particularly to Burgess John Johnstone and his Team at the Beach Ballroom for the buffet food and drinks, and Council staff on the night who assisted in ensuring everything ran smoothly.

A total of 15 teams took part in our Annual Quiz held at Aberdeenshire Cricket Club on 6th December. It was a very enjoyable evening with the winning team being Les Quizerables captained by Burgess Peter Mitchell.

Once again the Cricket Club were excellent hosts with the usual high standard of buffet. The Lord Dean gave thanks to Manager Chris Quinn-Waugh and her team. Also thanks go to Burgess Graham Guyan who brought his Victorian barrel organ along and entertained the quiz teams with Christmas Carols at the interval.

We had an excellent and very informative talk from Javier Martin-Torres from Aberdeen University. For those unable to log on live, please click on the link below to view the presentation

Following a recent meeting with the Assessors, The Lord Dean is pleased to announce that Trevor Runcie has been co-opted as an Assessor to serve a four year term. Trevor has been a Burgess since 2008 and will be a great addition working with the 5 other Assessors currently in post.

Alistair Ritchie, having served two 4 years terms, the second as Senior Assessor has now stood down, The Lord Dean has approached Sylvia Halkerston to replace Alistair as Senior Assessor, which she has accepted.

The Zoom call was well attended on Wednesday 21st April. For those unable to attend you can view it by clicking on the link below: