Last night, Full Council met at the Annual Town Council Meeting to elect the Chair/Mayor, Deputy Chair/Mayor and Leader of the Council for the year ahead.
The results were as follows:
Chair/Mayor: Alex Kay
Deputy Chair/Mayor: Dave Garwood
Leader of the Council: Dom Newton
Photo by John Baker (Left to right – Dom Newton, Alex Kay and Dave Garwood)
Cllr Alex Kay said of her appointment:
“It is an honour to be Mayor of this wonderful town. I will do my best for it and the people of the town. I am delighted that Dave Garwood is elected Deputy Mayor; he has been an excellent Mayor and we are grateful to him for his hard work guiding us through our first year as a new council. We have learned a lot and paved the way to better support and improve Bradford on Avon. We have a great team of Councillors and staff and I look forward to a year progressing our plans together, along with all our volunteers and towns people.”
Changes to Committee structures were also implemented which will mean that there are now fewer individual committees, with the intention that council business is less ‘meeting’, and more ‘outcome’ focused, providing a streamlined approach to achieving results.
The revised structure and elected Chairs are as follows:
Resources (comprising the former R&GP and Personnel committees): Chair, Dom Newton
Town Development (comprising the former Business and Tourism, and Town Management and Development committees): Chair, Simon McNeill-Ritchie
Environment and Planning (name switched to emphasise the former): Chair, Alex Kay
Community and Recreation: Chair, Dan Taylor
Highways and Transport: Chair, Dom Newton
In response to the changes, Leader of the Council, Dom Newton said:
“These changes, in combination with some procedural adjustments, mean that we are set fair for a successful year ahead. The new committee combinations mean that members can focus on content and delivery, not meeting dates. In particular, the new Town Development committee will ensure that sustainable economic and business development is at the heart of decision-making, and a single point of contact for business stakeholders, so that we can focus on achieving a thriving town centre for use of residents and visitors alike.”
The website will soon be updated to reflect the changes and upcoming meeting dates will be published. Keep an eye on our website’s Meetings page and social media @BoATownCouncil for further information.
Outgoing Mayor, Dave Garwood, will be giving a speech about his past year’s work at the upcoming Town Gathering on Thursday 17th May, and we invite the whole town along to celebrate the work volunteer groups, initiative leaders and councillors have put in during 2017-18, and to look forward to the year ahead. There will be a paid bar and music at the end of the meeting. More info HERE and we look forward to welcoming you!
