Susan Snowdon (born 1 April 1951) is a former

teacher A teacher, also called a schoolteacher or formally an educator, is a person who helps students to acquire knowledge, competence, or virtue, via the practice of teaching. ''Informally'' the role of teacher may be taken on by anyone (e.g. whe ...

and

magistrate The term magistrate is used in a variety of systems of governments and laws to refer to a civilian officer who administers the law. In ancient Rome, a '' magistratus'' was one of the highest ranking government officers, and possessed both judici ...

. She is the current

Lord Lieutenant of Durham This is a list of people who have served as Lord Lieutenant of Durham. *Henry Neville, 5th Earl of Westmorland 1552–? * Henry Hastings, 3rd Earl of Huntingdon 2 August 1586 – 1595 *''vacant'' *Robert Carr, 1st Earl of Somerset 4 February ...

and the first woman to hold that post.

Early life

Snowdon was born on 1 April 1951. Her father was a shop-keeper.

Career

Snowdon was a

primary school A primary school (in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Australia, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, and South Africa), junior school (in Australia), elementary school or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary e ...

teacher in Chilton and

Ferryhill Ferryhill is a town in County Durham, England, with an estimated population in 2018 of 9,362. The town grew in the 1900s around the coal mining industry. The last mine officially closed in 1968. It is located between the towns of Bishop Auckland ...

County Durham County Durham ( ), officially simply Durham,UK General Acts 1997 c. 23Lieutenancies Act 1997 Schedule 1(3). From legislation.gov.uk, retrieved 6 April 2022. is a ceremonial county in North East England.North East Assembly �About North East E ...

. In 1989, in order to advance her career and become a

deputy head teacher A deputy head teacher, deputy headmaster or deputy headmistress is the second most senior teacher in a school in the United Kingdom and elsewhere. Secondary schools usually also have between one and five deputy heads ("depute head" in Scotland) an ...

, she underwent a

medical Medicine is the science and practice of caring for a patient, managing the diagnosis, prognosis, prevention, treatment, palliation of their injury or disease, and promoting their health. Medicine encompasses a variety of health care practic ...

. This showed that her

aortic valve The aortic valve is a valve in the heart of humans and most other animals, located between the left ventricle and the aorta. It is one of the four valves of the heart and one of the two semilunar valves, the other being the pulmonary valve. The ...

"had completely perished" and she required immediate surgery to prevent her death by Christmas of that year. The surgery, in which a metal valve was successfully fitted, saved her life. However, such a major health issue meant that she could no longer teach. On 3 August 2006, she was commissioned a Deputy Lieutenant (DL) in the County of Durham. On 8 March 2013, she was appointed

Lord Lieutenant of County Durham This is a list of people who have served as Lord Lieutenant of Durham. *Henry Neville, 5th Earl of Westmorland 1552–? *Henry Hastings, 3rd Earl of Huntingdon 2 August 1586 – 1595 *''vacant'' *Robert Carr, 1st Earl of Somerset 4 February ...

, becoming the Queen's representative in the county. She succeeded Sir Paul Nicholson to become the county's 30th Lord Lieutenant.

Personal life

She is married to Keith Snowdon, a farmer.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Snowdon, Susan 1951 births Lord-Lieutenants of Durham Schoolteachers from County Durham Living people