Nantwich Town Council is to have a Labour councillor for the first time in many years, writes Sara Royle.
Douglas Bowyer-Bates, a Labour party candidate, polled 1,240 votes to secure one of seven seats representing Nantwich North & West on the town council.
Long-serving council members Penny Butterill and Arthur Moran retained their seats for Nantwich First.
Between them, they topped the polls, with Cllr Moran taking 1,765 votes and Cllr Butterill receiving 1,721 votes.
Stuart Bostock is a third Nantwich First councillor after he was elected with 1,324 votes.
Three Conservatives were also elected, including Gordon Bartram (1,452 votes), Diana Hall (1,282) and Pam Kirkham (1,366).
Cllrs Moran and Butterill said they were looking forward to seeing fresh faces on the town council.
And Cllr Moran said he was encouraged by the presence of a Labour representative.
“Democracy is all about being opposed, and it isn’t good for democracy if one party continues to dominate, which is what we’ve seen on the Nantwich Council over the last four years,” he said.
Similarly, he was pleased to see 18-year-old Malbank School student Zoe Van-Cauter’s engagement with local politics. Zoe polled almost 1,000 votes.
“I think that’s good. We’ve got to get younger people involved in politics,” added Cllr Moran.
“They feel a little bit disengaged; that’s why the turnout in national and local elections is very low from that age group.”
Cllr Butterill said she is keen to bring Nantwich Civic Hall back to life.
She said she will be focusing on “turn[ing] the Civic Hall around so that we can make a profit”.
“I’d have really liked to have seen this count held at the civic hall,” she said during last night’s (May 9) town council election results.
“You can’t blame Nantwich Town Council for charging Cheshire East to use it because we took it on from Cheshire East with no money and it was making a big loss.
“We’ve now got to turn it around to make some money from it.”
New councillor Diana Hall, 69, is hoping to bring a fresh look to the council having only moved to the town three years ago.
“I’ve always been interested in politics and I’m looking forward to promoting Nantwich,” she said.
Cllr Hall is already involved with the Nantwich Walled Garden Society, and says preserving the town’s historic landmarks is crucial.
Meanwhile, five town councillors representing Nantwich South were also elected last night – all Conservative.
Four of these retained their seats having served previously, including Andrew Martin (1,230 votes), John Lewis (1,103), David Marren (942) and Norma Simpson (989).
Newcomer to the town council is Peter Groves, who polled 1,002 votes. Cllr Groves already represents Nantwich South and Stapeley ward on Cheshire East Council.
He said: “I’m really looking forward to working with all the town councillors for the good of the town and its residents.”
Cllr Marren added: “I’m very pleased to get back on the town council.
“I love the town, I shop there, it’s my favourite place in the region and I will do my best for the town as I always have.”
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