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LARGEST ASSAY OFFICE IN THE WORLD ELECTS FIRST WOMAN CHAIRMAN

For the first time in its 233-year history, the Birmingham Assay Office is to have a woman as its chairman.  Kay Alexander, the BBC broadcaster and journalist, is to take up the position when the current Chairman, Roger Burman CBE, retires in October 2006.

Kay’s association with the Birmingham Assay Office began in 1996 when she was invited to become a Guardian of the Standard of Wrought Plate in Birmingham.  She became a Warden (non-executive director) in 2000 and was appointed to the British Hallmarking Council in 2004.

Commenting on Kay’s appointment, Michael Allchin, the Birmingham Assay Master said: "I am very pleased that Kay Alexander has been elected as Chairman of The Birmingham Assay Office.  Kay is a hard working, warm and friendly person, well known throughout Birmingham for her business and charity work.  Most of our employees are women, so I think it is appropriate to have our first woman Chairman.  All of us at The Birmingham Assay Office are looking forward to working with her.”

The Birmingham Assay Office is the largest Assay Office in the World. Founded by Act of Parliament in 1773, its main function is to test and hallmark precious metal items as required by the Hallmarking Act. In 2005 over 12 million articles were hallmarked at the Birmingham Assay Office.

Of her appointment Kay said: "I am delighted and honoured to have been elected Chairman of such an important and illustrious organisation. It is doubly pleasing to be the first woman to take up this role. The Birmingham Assay Office upholds the highest hallmarking standards to

protect the customer against fraud, and traders against unfair competition and it is vital that we do all we can to promote it. 

Introduced in 1300 by a statute of Edward 1, hallmarking represents the earliest form of consumer protection.  As well as its statutory hallmarking duty, the Birmingham Assay Office offers the jewellery trade, associated and non associated industries independent, specialist advice and expertise in other areas such as precious and non precious metal analysis which is undertaken by its internationally renowned Laboratory.  The Birmingham Assay Office is home to the UK’s leading jewellery valuation service, SafeGuard, supplying all the major high street and independent jewellery retailers with high quality, independent jewellery valuations from a team of experienced, expert valuers. The Birmingham Assay Office alsoprovides the UK’s leading gemmological service, AnchorCert, which carries out independent diamond certification and grading from its Laboratories based in Birmingham and in Hatton Garden, London.

Kay Alexander (56) was educated at Frensham Heights School in Surrey, and read English at the University of Birmingham. After graduating she joined the BBC at Pebble Mill in Birmingham as a reporter on Radio 4, particularly working on You & Yours, Checkpoint and Woman’s Hour. She then set her sights on television and joined “Midlands Today”. In 2003 she received a special award from the Royal Television Society to mark thirty years in television.

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