Mayor looks towards 2016

We are now in 2016, the decorations, and our beloved Christmas lights are down, and even the weather is behaving how we expect. 

Here in Melksham there will be many changes, some big and others smaller. The biggest one will be the move of the Football and Rugby clubs to their new premises at Woolmore Farm, a long awaited initiative, we wish them well. This, together with the work that will take place in the Market Place are signs that our long awaited new centre, at Melksham House will become a reality, although this will not be finished in the coming year.

I am not sure where the plans for the new dig of the Wilts and Berks Canal is in the planning process, it would be wonderful if this obtained permission and a start was made, so fingers crossed everybody.

More new houses will be built and we will welcome more people to join our lovely community. Speaking of community, I feel that this is Melksham’s strength. It is individuals and groups that make our town so fantastic. And in the coming years we will all need to play our part, if we want our town to flourish, to have lovely flower displays, brilliant Christmas lights and litter-free streets.

Wiltshire Council are increasingly unable to provide many of the services that we have taken for granted, and are passing them over to local councils. Litter picking, flower displays, toilet provision are the ones we know about now. We have a choice, forget these services and have dirty streets, no flowers, in certain areas, and no toilets, or the public helps the councils and our rates go up.

Toilets are a concern as they are costly to provide, and I would not expect the public to do the cleaning etc. But litter picking, yes we can help. There is already a well-established scheme, running on the first Sunday of every month, from 1.00 – 3.00pm, meeting at the Town Hall. People go out in pairs or groups and litter pick, remove weeds, plant perennials and generally tidy our town. The inducements are tea/coffee and cakes at the end and Time Credits are awarded, these can be used to see films at the Assembly Hall and other things. Please consider coming along and joining us, we range from late 70s to under 10s.

There are, in our town many clubs and groups, but many are now suffering from falling numbers, this often affects the elderly, loss of lunch clubs and other facilities, the Link group needs more drivers to be effective. So why not consider if you can offer your help to our town, if we all gave a little the jobs would soon be done.

The Town Hall is there for us all, they are the font of all, well most, knowledge and the excellent staff are there to help you.

Let’s look forward to 2016 and agree it will be a year to remember, for all the best reasons.