Mayor’s Report August until October 2022

This report will cover the last two months as we did not have a Town Council meeting in September.

I have completed some of my civic duties supporting the Mayor of Axbridge as part of the Blackberry Festival and Carnival. I also attended a Civic Award ceremony in North Petherton which has helped me to consider how we might organise our own ceremony in the spring.

Locally, I have enjoyed meeting groups who are reaching out into the community. I opened the new Methodist Church ‘Waffle Café’. They are now exploring ways of providing ‘Warm Spaces’ within the normal work of the church. It was a privilege to meet members of the Emergency Services at their Open Day. It was a good opportunity to thank them for their commitment and courage in keeping us  safe at all times. I was pleased to attend a family day run by the local Rotary group for Ukrainian families. It was sad to hear of their traumas but good to see them starting to relax with their host families. It was good to celebrate 75 years of ‘Ellen’s Cottages’ and the Almshouse movement. They have a fascinating history including a rule that all inmates should scrub out their cottage floors every week!! I had the sad duty of joining St Andrews Church as they said goodbye to Rev. Graham Witts. He was obviously thought of with great respect and affection and will be sadly missed.

I have enjoyed getting to know members of our Youth groups. I took great pleasure in going rowing on Cheddar Reservoir with our Sea Cadets. I am pleased to say I did not end up in the water! They took great care of me.  I also attended their fund raising event with the Ladies Moose at their headquarters.  I thoroughly enjoyed meeting the King Alfred’s Amateur Boxing Club in Highbridge. I was impressed with their enthusiasm and expertise. They were very welcoming and I felt a part of the family. It was good to see people of all ages working and playing together. There was a lot of evidence of team work and support for each other.

In my preparation for the reinstatement of our Youth Town Council, I have met with the Principal of King Alfred’s Academy and we have started to work on the organisation of the council. We also discussed involving his students in our Community Workshop on Climate and Ecological Change.  I have also met with Mary Leonard who teaches at Worle Secondary School but also coordinates youth groups across the Academy Trust. She took a group of students to COP 26 and was able to make some useful suggestion both for the Youth Town Council and our Community Workshop. I was able to attend the recent Open Day at King Alfred’s and was shown around the school by two very articulate and charming Prefects. Harley and Lola were able to show me around all departments and give me a good idea of the work that is achieved at the school. All the staff that I met were welcoming and very happy to explain their curriculum with great enthusiasm. It was good to see prospective Year 7 students engaged in so many stimulating activities that will certainly make them excited about their change of school next September.

Councillor Julie Flurry and I have met several times to plan the Climate and Ecological Community Workshop. The Town Clerk and I had several meetings as we worked our way through the Town Council’s response to the Queen’s death. This was a sad time for us all but we were able to balance the ending of one era with the welcoming of another. We were able to provide opportunities for our Town to share their memories of a wonderful servant to the country whilst also welcoming our new King.

Kind regards

Councillor Lesley Millard
Mayor and Chair of Burnham and Highbridge Town Council