THE outgoing Mayor of Hertsmere has raised more than £14,000 for her two chosen charities during her year in office.

Councillor Linda Silver (Conservative, Bushey Park) said she was extremely proud to be able to donate £10,000 to Help for Heroes, which supports wounded serviceman and women, and just under £5,000 to the Jewish Association for Mental Illness.

Councillor Silver chose the armed forces charity to honour her father who had been a colonel in the Royal Engineers and served in the Second World War.

She thanked her son for organising a charity golf day in Potters Bar in September 2010, which raised more than £6,000.

The 68-year-old said: “It is an astonishing amount. It brought a tear to my eye when they told me the total and I'm so chuffed people have been so generous in these hard economic times.”

Looking back over her year in office, Councillor Silver said visiting schools in the area to chat with children about local democracy had been one of the highlights.

Now the grandmother is looking forward to a well-earned rest and a less hectic schedule, allowing her to concentrate on spending time with her family.

She is also preparing to get back into political life and said she is especially looking forward to sitting on the Hertsmere planning committee.

Councillor Silver will step down from her role at a ceremony in the council chamber on Wednesday, to be succeeded by Deputy Mayor Peter Knell (Conservative, Potters Bar Furzefield).