THE new Mayor of Wellington, Cllr Janet Lloyd, has thanked her predecessor for all his hard work over the past 12 months.

Cllr Lloyd was elected as mayor at Wellington Town Council’s annual meeting and was congratulated by Cllr Marcus Barr, who stood down after one year.

“I would like to thank Marcus for his time as mayor,” said Cllr Lloyd. “He had a very busy year.”

Cllr John Thorne added: “I would also like to thank Marcus for the work he has done.

“We all recognise that each mayor is different and Marcus is no different in being very different.

“He has thrown himself into it and represented the council and the town at events far and wide and possibly been able to reach some of the places other mayors have not.

“I sincerely thank him for everything he has done.”

Cllr Thorne said it had been an historic year for Wellington with the town council celebrating its 50th anniversary and Freedom of Wellington being awarded to The Rifles, which had been an extremely prestigious occasion and organised so well.

Cllr Catherine Govier, who was appointed deputy mayor for a second term, added: “Congratulations to Marcus on all his hard work and it was a pleasure to serve with him.”

And Cllr Sean Pringle-Kosikowsky added: “It has been really refreshing to see someone like Marcus as mayor.

“It shows people that everyone can be a councillor and be a part of the community.”

Cllr Barr was touched by the words of thanks.

“It has been a real honour and privilege and I have met some wonderful people over the last year,” he told councillors.

“There are hundreds of really good people in this town who help to bring our community together. Without them we would not have a town or a community.

“Being mayor is a hard job because you suddenly find that the focus is on you. It is all about you. But it is a wonderful opportunity.

“I would like to thank Catherine for her support as my deputy mayor – we had some giggles along the way.”

It was believed that the combination of Cllr Lloyd as mayor and Cllr Govier as deputy mayor in 2024-25 was the first time in Wellington Town Council’s 50-year history that both positions had been taken by women, bringing a touch of ‘girl power’ to the council.

Cllr Lloyd had twice previously served as mayor, in 2015-16, when the deputy mayor was the late Cllr Bob Bowrah, and again in 2019-21, when her deputy was Cllr Mark Lithgow.

Although traditionally Wellington mayors serve for two years, Cllr Barr said at the outset he only wanted to hold the office for 12 months.

During his term in office, Cllr Barr became a grandfather twice in the space of seven weeks last summer.

His final meeting as mayor coincided with daughter Cllr Zoe Barr announcing her resignation from the council after two years because of the challenges of balancing family and work with councillor duties.