I am writing this at the beginning of July, one month into my new term as Mayor. At our June Council meeting, it was a pleasure for me to appoint Elliot Astbury as the first Mayor’s Cadet for this town – It’s an annual appointment and the role is to support the Mayor in his official duties. Any older teenage resident in Woodbridge can apply providing they are part of a uniformed group (cadets, scouts, police, etc). A week after the appointment, Elliot supported me at the Civic Service on Suffolk Day.

Woodbridge Town Council worked with Father Nigel and St Mary’s Church to celebrate Suffolk Day on the 21st June. Events were in the Church, on Market Hill, in the Shire Hall and in The Bull Hotel and provided plenty of interest to the day. It’s (https://www.suffolkday. co.uk/) always on the longest day of the year and the aim is to celebrate all that makes the county (and in our case, Woodbridge!) a great place to be. Each year a town in Suffolk is chosen as the main host and this year it was Bury St Edmunds.

The following weekend on 27th June, Woodbridge Town Council, together with our MP Jenny Riddell-Carpenter, hosted a Community Day at the Football Club for the 70 Gurkha Parachute Squadron. The soldiers and their families arrived recently at Rock Barracks, transferring from Maidstone and as part of 23 Parachute Engineer Regiment, they have the Freedom of our Town. With a traditional English tea, some games for the youngsters and over 100 badges being made, it provided an enjoyable occasion and an opportunity for the town to show its appreciation of the Gurkhas and what they do for us all.

At our Amenities Committee, we held a discussion about improvements the Town Council might undertake in Warwick Avenue and elsewhere in Farlingaye and Kyson wards. Supporting all parts of our Town remains a priority for this Council and there will be more on this in due course as the work on green spaces being undertaken in the context of Local Government Reform gathers pace.

Finally, there is an important consultation out from East Suffolk Council on their local plan which covers development in our area over the next 20 years. By the time you read this, the first stage of the consultation will have closed but your council has encouraged residents to respond and also made a submission on your behalf.

As Mayor, I send my best wishes to you all for the summer.

Councillor Nigel Phipps Mayor of Woodbridge