New town councillor is ready to get ‘stuck in’ to help improve the town

MELKSHAM’s new town councillor has vowed to help tackle littering and anti-social behaviour in the town and make parks more inclusive.

In last month’s by-election, Vanessa Fiorelli, for the Liberal Democrats, was elected to represent the Melksham South ward.

Originally from Australia, cllr Fiorelli moved to the UK three years ago, settling down in Bath and finding work at the Post Office in Melksham.

Last year in July, cllr Fiorelli and her partner made the decision to move to Melksham. Cllr Fiorelli said, “When we first moved to Melksham, my partner and I, we really wanted to get stuck in and get involved with the community. So we started getting involved with things like the town tidy days, and started going to the Melksham Lib Dems meetings. It really piqued my interest in the town.

“When the role of town councillor became available I thought ‘why not?!’, I really love getting stuck in and to be able to represent people who perhaps don’t normally have a voice, that’s what I love, I get to help people and get to take care of people.

“What the council is already doing, making Melksham a better place, is really interesting to me. They are already on the right track and I want to be part of that.

“We are going to achieve some brilliant things and they already have done so much, much more than other councils have done.”

Discussing her own personal goals for the town, cllr Fiorelli said, “When I was out and about talking to people in Melksham South, the things that kept popping up that people are genuinely concerned about are the little things that can make the biggest differences.

“Things like, the cleanliness and appearance of their area, their street, their parks. Litter, what are we doing about people who are littering and why isn’t it bing picked up? Tackling anti-social behaviour; what can we do to solve the root cause?

“One thing I really want to see is inclusive play equipment in our parks. This is equipment that any child can play on, kids of all physical abilities, they can play on it together, alone, whatever they want.

“I’m the type of person who will identify a problem, think about how we can fix it and also question if people have the tools and resources to fix it.”

To contact cllr Fiorelli, email: vanessa.fiorelli @melkshamtown.co.uk

Results of the Melksham South ward by-election: Vanessa Fiorelli (Liberal Democrats) (elected) 285; Judith Gradwell (Labour Party) 183; Bruce Petty (Melksham First) 130; Matthew Snook (The Conservative Party Candidate) 258.