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Walking the Boundary of Dorset: High Sheriff's Mission to Tackle County Lines

  • 21 hours ago
  • 2 min read

This week, Dorset's High Sheriff Helena Conibear laced up her walking boots and set off on an extraordinary 216-mile trek around the entire boundary of the county, which she'll complete in stages through the summer and into autumn. The first leg began this week, and all are welcome to, if they can, walk alongside her or support the initiative.



Helena took up the historic, unpaid role of High Sheriff in March 2026—a position dating back before the Norman Conquest, representing the Crown in matters of law and order across the county. Rather than a ceremonial year, she's chosen to use it to shine a very direct light on something affecting communities across Dorset, including right here in Poundbury and Dorchester: county lines drug exploitation.

County lines activity involves criminal networks using young people—often groomed online through social media and gaming platforms—to move and sell drugs across the country. It is, as Helena puts it, hidden in plain sight, and no rural community in Dorset is immune.

Many of you will already know Helena's work through the Talk About Trust, the charity she founded in 2009, based right here in Poundbury at Pips Café on the Great Field. The Trust works with young people across the UK, giving them the knowledge and resilience to make safer choices around drugs and alcohol—work that feels more urgent than ever.

Starting in Charmouth and continuing in stages through Kimmeridge, Worth Matravers, Swanage, Studland and beyond, Helena—accompanied by her dog Zed—will walk the entire boundary of Dorset over the coming months, raising awareness with every mile.


How you can get involved:

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