Local history will be made this Sunday 12th March when Kila Redfearn will be officially inaugurated as the first female Lytham Town Crier. The Lord of the Manor of Lytham, Hugo Bryan, will be present at Lytham Hall to officially appoint Kila into her new role, when Colin Ballard retires from the post and passes the responsibility to Kila.
Kila, a 53-year-old proud mum of four daughters and two grandchildren, is currently the Head of Charity for Blue Skies, the Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS charity and is well know locally for her dedicated work in the community.
Kila said, ‘I am totally blown away by this honour. I think it’s important the town has its own crier as it matches the heritage and ceremony of Lytham. I always wanted to be a Town Crier, even as a little girl – I just loved the pomp and ceremony of the role. I have done a lot of charity work, including as a trustee at Park View 4U and formerly at Lowther Pavilion. This will be an extension of that, but with a lot more ceremony added to it.’
Kila added, “It embraces everything I love – dressing up, representing my community, meeting new people and being in the middle of everything. For me this role is perfect.”
Kila new role was featured in Granada Reports – see the video here: https://www.itv.com/news/granada/2023-03-08/mum-makes-history-as-towns-first-female-town-crier
Lord of the Manor, Hugo James Gordon Bryan, said: ‘Kila obviously has a passion for serving the community of Lytham and a keen interest in preserving its historic traditions and I very much look forward to her taking on the role of Town Crier.’
A Lytham Hall spokesperson said, ‘All the team here at Lytham Hall send our warmest wishes to Kila, and are more than confident she will be absolutely fantastic in this role.’
The role of Lytham Town Crier is voluntary and any money raised from undertaking private proclamations within the position will go back into Lytham Hall Charity which is the seat of the original Squire of Lytham.
brilliant photographs of our new Town Crier by Elizabeth Gomm
Below – Kila and her two grandchildren
