Ben Walker (Conservative) was elected the new Mayor of Bradley Stoke at last night’s Annual General Meeting of the Town Council.
He received the ceremonial chain of office from outgoing Mayor Mark Forsyth, who had previously announced that he had raised a total of £6,735 for his two nominated charities during his year in office.
The money in the Mayor’s Fund comes principally from the Community Festival in June and the Fireworks Display in November (the latter attracting a record crowd in 2009).
Cheques for £3367.50 were presented to Pat Jones of the Bristol Dyslexia Centre (left photo) and John Francis of the British Limbless Ex-Servicemen’s Association (BLESMA).
Cllr Walker, who lives in Little Stoke and runs a building services company, represents the Lakeside parish ward of Bradley Stoke. His achievements as a Councillor include helping to form the Lakeside Residents’ Association and heading the recent negotiations towards the formation of a new bowls club at Baileys Court.
The new Mayor’s charity will be St Peter’s Hospice, which provides, within the wider Bristol area, specialist palliative care to adults suffering from life-threatening illness.
Related link: More photos from the Town Council AGM (PicasaWeb)
Another “out of Town Mayor”! Are there no residents who want the job?
Yes, there are but Town residents don’t vote for them. This is what happened in last year’s by-election when we added another non-resident councillor to Bradley Stoke Town Council.
Ah, fair enough then!
Why this hysteria about councillors who don’t live in Bradley Stoke. Ben Walker is a young man who is passionate about this town. He used to live in Great Meadow Road and plans to return to Bradley Stoke in the future. Whilst we would all like to see our councillors live in the Town, the fact that they live just outside should make no difference.
There was a comment last week on this web site that if we didn’t have councillors from out of town then a lot of people would not be represented at the council.
All parties need unpaid volunteers to stand for election and anyone interested should contact the political party of their choice or if they wish to be independant contact the Town Council direct.
There are a few people that I know who continually moan, but when asked won’t stand. Take that as you will.
Best wishes. John Ashe.