I WAS elected Mayor of Bishops Castle in May having been a Town Councillor for over 20 years, and I must say that I am enjoying it very much.

Our Festivals throughout the year are an asset to the town and community. These include the Arts and Walking Festivals, our annual Carnival which has been a tradition of the town for 135 years, the Beer Festival, Party in the Park which held its 10th anniversary, the Michaelmas Fair and the Christmas Lights and Grotto celebrations.

I would like to thank all the committee members and volunteers for their continued hard work.

The Town Council has co-opted three new councillors since August which makes our decision making much healthier.

Congratulations to Councillor Ruth Houghton, who won the by-election for South Shropshire for the Lib Dems and is now our new county councillor.

Our Town Council will be initiating a ‘Neighbourhood Watch Scheme’ for Bishops Castle and the surrounding area which is proven to help with crime.

At our September meeting the Council declared a ‘State of Climate Emergency’ along with many other towns across the country; we all need to do what we can to help reduce our carbon emissions and ‘Save the Planet’.

In October, myself and the Deputy Mayor, Councillor Grant Perry were honoured to hand out the annual Civic, Grant and Allotment Awards to members of the community. The awards recognise all the hard work that individuals and groups put into making our town such a pleasant place to live.

We were delighted to hear that planning permission has been passed to start work on the Business Park; we are hopeful that the County Council will help with funding for the infrastructure and ground work.

Work also started above Oak Meadow on 24 new houses to meet the needs of local people. Planning has been passed for 55 houses on the field along School House Lane; there will be a mix of affordable houses to rent, shared ownership and open market to buy.

The Neighbourhood Development Plan is coming to a conclusion; this will enable the town and community to have more say over what is designed and built in our town.

It was very sad to see the end of an era for two of the town’s best loved shops.

Gwythers and Burds decided to close at Christmas after decades of serving Bishop’s Castle. Their dedication and loyalty has been tremendous. I am sure all of the community joins me in thanking them most affectionately for all their hard work over the years.

We are looking forward to 2020 – a new decade, of which I sincerely hope will bring prosperity and success to our beautiful town," said Julie.

MAYOR Julie Magill is pictured with Father Christmas at the switching on of the town's Christmas lights.

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