The Current High Sheriff of Essex is Susannah Dutton.

The High Sheriff's Fund was established in 1997 to give credit and support to local initiatives that address crime, community safety and anti-social behaviour.

The Fund is managed by the independent charitable trust Essex Community Foundation (ECF) and has distributed grants totalling over half a million pounds to local charities and voluntary organisations.

Previous grant recipients include a knife crime education programme for young people, an organisation providing work experience to ex-offenders and a specialist support scheme for victims of modern slavery were among those to receive awards.