The newly appointed mayor for Bradley Stoke is Cllr Anthony Griffiths. Known by his preferred name, Tony was appointed as mayor during the town council’s annual general meeting (AGM) on 20th May 2020.
Due to the Covid-19 lockdown situation, and the need to follow the rules regarding social distancing, the AGM was held as a video conference meeting. Using a virtual platform to host the AGM is a significant first for the town council, but possibly something we will get used to as this way of working has become the ‘new normal’ for so many of us in the past few months.
Tony has lived in Bradley Stoke for 13 years. He has served on the town council since May 2011 and currently represents the Bradley Stoke North ward.
Tony was an architectural technician and he served with the Royal Observer Corp, seeing active service in the Far East. With his family, he ran two pubs and three restaurants and two of these are still operating in Manchester. For the past ten years, Tony worked as hospitality and facilitators manager, but he is now semi-retired and filling his time working as a cyber security consultant and fulfilling his councillor duties.
Tony has taken on the role of mayor during unprecedented times where the impact of Covid-19 has played a significant part in all our lives, locally, nationally and internationally. As a result, it is going to be a tough year in office with many planned projects and engagements having to be postponed or cancelled. However, Tony is hoping the fireworks display in November will be able to go ahead. This year, the popular free display will have the added benefit of being pet-friendly without the loud bangs. Tony is also hoping it will be possible to hold an event in the spring, maybe a return to the Proms on the Green.
The impact of the lockdown has had some positive benefits for Tony. The reduced level of traffic on the roads has made it a more pleasurable experience to get out and exercise on his bike. Tony is a keen cyclist, and, during the summer of 2018, he cycled from John O’Groats to Land’s End with a friend which raised over £5,000 for charity.
For the mayor’s charities for this year, Tony has decided to continue to support the Great Western Air Ambulance. It costs £3 million per year to run this essential service, equating to over £8,000 a day, with no funding other than from charitable sources. Tony’s second charity is Next Link, which supports victims of domestic abuse.
Tony is looking forward to his year in office and will continue to act for and help the people of Bradley Stoke in his new role. He would particularly like to support any local initiatives and organisations and he would welcome invitations to attend any functions or events you have planned.
We wish Cllr Griffiths a very happy, successful and safe year in office.
This article originally appeared in the July/August 2020 issue of the Bradley Stoke Journal magazine (on page 23). The magazine is delivered FREE, nine times a year, to ALL 8,700 homes in Bradley Stoke. Phone 01454 300 400 to enquire about advertising or leaflet insertion.
