ANDREA Halford probably wears more hats than the regular racegoers at Ascot. She is a highly skilled administrator, diplomat, legal and financial adviser, property inspector, guardian angel and comic.

But most of all she's a true professional. She has to be in her job - she's clerk to Kempsey Parish Council.

And Kempsey boasts the quality standard, which means Mrs Halford has special clerk's qualifications.

"I've had to be qualified since 2003. By then I had been doing the job for 19 years and the Deputy Prime Minister wondered if I was competent," she said, chuckling.

She does a huge amount of paperwork during her four mornings a week in her office at the back of the village community centre - but she was already used to that.

Mrs Halford had worked in the clerk's department of Worcestershire County Coun-cil and then did a spell in the Crown Court office for Worcester and Hereford Crown Courts before taking time to have a family.

Then she saw the clerk's job advertised and, as she had retained her interest in local government and the post allowed her to work from home, she decided to apply.

"I had always been in the top tier of local government and to find I had come down to the grass roots level, where I was working on my own without any assistance, was a bit of a shock to the system," she said.

Mrs Halford has lived on a farm in the village for 38 years and squashed herself into a room in the old dairy to do her parish council work. She operated from there for 15 years.

There is no such thing as a typical day in the life of a parish clerk, she says. Each one can throw up all sorts of odd encounters and unusual issues which require her attention.

The regular duties involve preparing agendas for parish council meetings, attending meetings, taking minutes and preparing any correspondence resulting from them. There can be anything from two to six meetings a month for her to attend.

In addition she has to deal with reams of paperwork from the Government. "The paperwork seems to rain down on us. I sometimes feel like I'm drowning in it. The Govern-ment is constantly moving the goalposts and we are constantly getting consultation documents.

"I am constantly getting letters from the district and county councils and letters from parishioners."

She also has to deal with all financial and legal matters affecting the parish council.

This is no small task. Kempsey is one of the biggest parishes in the county with 1,500 households and a population of 3,500. "It is also a huge land and property owner with assets over £1m. This includes the community centre, the sports pavilion, the playing field, the Rocky conservation area in Church Street and five areas of common land total-ling 255 acres," she said.

It is not surprising that Mrs Halford has been known to put in the odd extra hour or two to ensure everything gets done.

"I do extra hours because I like to think I give value for money. I think that is typical of all parish clerks. It is a labour of love for the parish where you live."

The parish clerk provides the link between parishioners and the parish council, says Mrs Halford. And apart from being exceptionally well organised, she feels the most important qualities to succeed in the job are a well developed sense of humour and an ability to listen.

"You'd die if you didn't have a good sense of humour. I think it is absolutely essential for a parish clerk."

She once received a phone call from a man who wanted to know if he had to go into Worcester to get on to the electrical register. "I told him if he wanted to get on the electoral roll, he should contact the district council," she said grinning broadly.

"Another man rang me at 11.30pm. He was slightly inebriated. He wanted to report the street lamp outside his home was not working and could I do something about it. He said it had been out for two weeks and he thought he should report it immediately!

"A lady rang on Christmas Day to complain her street light was out and she then wished me the compliments of the season.

"A thank you is a very rare thing in a clerk's job. You are there to be moaned at. You have to laugh it off."

Part of her job is commons administrative officer. "I go out in all weathers and check that the gates are shut correctly and the fences are intact on the commons."

She effectively dealt with an invasion of New Age travel-lers on Stonehall Common by using her nose. She spotted the strong aroma of patchouli oil coming from the gorse bushes, which was being burned to mask the smell of another substance being smoked. When Mrs Halford suggested the police might have to get involved, they moved on very quickly, she recalled.

Then there was the call from a parishioner concerned that llamas could be put out onto the common land on the Upper and Lower Hams. "He'd seen a notice about the Lammas common land."

But it was probably her voluntary role as emergency planning officer which was a true test of her commitment and sense of humour.

"I monitor the flooding in Church Street and arrange delivery of sandbags and make sure everyone is alright. The floods of 2000 were the worst. I do not think my wellies were dry for weeks. There was raw sewage floating in it and I was wading around in it and the water was getting in.

"My husband kept joking with me that my toe nails would fall off," she said with hearty laughter.