Judy Sarsby was born in Old Windsor in 1960 and raised in Wraysbury. She is the youngest of a large family. Her father, a Second World War fighter pilot and engineer, met her mother during the war. Her mother, believed to be a French Special Operations Executive (SOE) later served as a Parish Councillor in Wraysbury, where the family lived in a farmhouse “overrun by children and pets.”
Keen to make her own way, she left home at 19 for a flat above a fish and chip shop in the outskirts of Windsor. She soon found her footing in corporate sales, and, hoping to earn the approval of her father she took a role and a form of apprenticeship at a mechanical engineering firm and later moved to their sales team.
By 28 she had lost both parents. By 35 she had married, had two children (a son and daughter), divorced, and become sales director of a printing company in Surrey. Wanting to be more present for her children, she co-founded her own specialist sourcing and manufacturing company, supplying the promotional markets and London’s advertising industry.
After 10 years of what she describes as “living with three ADHD people flying around the house like unguided missiles,” Laszlo, her second husband, proposed in 2011. The family shared a love of sport, especially skiing and rowing, so they moved to Weybridge — the river ticked one box, and the town felt welcoming and diversely interesting.
As her children left for university, she took early retirement, re-immersed herself in her love of painting, bought a sculling boat, and immersed herself in rowing as a senior. She became a grandmother, Welfare Officer at Weybridge Rowing Club and began volunteering for local refugee charity Elmbridge CAN.
When Covid hit and government PPE supply faltered, she contacted former colleagues and began sourcing and supplying to the care home next door and to government contracts. Her proactive approach caught the attention of local councillors who asked her to stand for Weybridge in the 2021 elections.
Shortly after her election, a colleague asked if she had event management experience and would consider running Weybridge Fair, which was due to launch that year, but postponed due to Covid. It was started with around 50 stalls and Brooklands Radio presenting local groups and choirs. It has since grown into the week-long Weybridge Festival: nearly 10,000 attendees, 100 stalls from within the community, major staged music events, and several smaller events across town. Bringing together schools, clubs, faith groups and residents (and a great group of volunteers) for a free week of entertainment — and contributing the profits to local charities — has been, in her words, “perhaps my greatest joy since moving to Weybridge.”
Though she moved often after leaving her parental home, Weybridge in Elmbridge is the first place she has truly felt at home and wanted to put down roots. She was both surprised and delighted to be asked to stand as the last Mayor of Elmbridge. Tentative about the role but ready for the challenge, Judy plans to focus her 10-and-a-half-month term on promoting unity and togetherness in Elmbridge.
In a period marked by division, hate, war and unrest worldwide, her aim is clear: as Elmbridge becomes a cog in a bigger machine, Judy hopes to demonstrate the benefits of unity within the borough and set a path others may follow. Her message — many voices, one anthem. One borough, one bond: Elmbridge Together.
Mayor’s charity
The Mayor’s charity this year is Elmbridge CAN. The charity helps forcibly displaced people - such as refugees and asylum seekers - in and around Elmbridge to rebuild their lives to become independent and contributing members of our community. They offer integration services in partnership with local
organisations and through their network of committed volunteers.
For more information about the charity, email the Mayor’s secretary: themayor@elmbridge.gov.uk or view:
More information
For more information about the Mayor, see Councillor Judy Sarsby.
For more information about the Deputy Mayor, see Councillor Simon Leifer.