MATTHEW Bayliss has been elected Alton’s new town mayor.

A councillor for five years, with several chairmanships under his belt, Mr Bayliss received unanimous support from fellow councillors as last year’s incumbent, Pam Jones, handed over the chain of office during last Wednesday’s mayor-making ceremony in the town hall.

In thanking councillors for their support, Mr Bayliss said it was “a real privilege to hold the position”.

With “a very testing year ahead”, he was looking forward to working with councillors on a busy agenda and taking the opportunity to represent and further the interests of Alton and Altonians, he said.

Mrs Jones ended her term of office by making presentations to her chaplain, Reverend Keith Underhill, to husband and consort Dr John Jones, and to “right-hand assistant” Samantha Brown.

She also handed over a cheque to Andrea Poston, representing Home-Start WeyWater, the charity for her mayoral year, bringing the total raised to £2,566.

In paying tribute to Pam and Dr Jones for a job well done, Mr Bayliss presented them both with gifts and badges.

Mr Bayliss then named his chaplain for the year as Reverend Andrew Micklefield, and his charity once again as Home-Start WeyWater.

Dean Phillips received a majority endorsement as deputy mayor despite a counter nomination by the Liberal Democrats who nominated Bisi Eni-Olotu. The vote was recorded and went down party lines.

As did the vote for leader which saw Peter Hicks returned by eight votes to four. The Lib Dems proposed Graham Hill for the role – a proposal declined by Mr Hill, who is expecting another busy year in his district council role, representing Alton as assistant portfolio holder to leader Ferris Cowper in his hoped-for role as chairman of open spaces and supporting in the implementation of Alton’s Neighbourhood Plan.

In his acceptance speech, Mr Hicks said that he wanted, in the name of continuity and succession planning, to continue in the role for one more year.

To that end, he was determined to help steer the council through an important 12 months in order to achieve “the short-term deliverables in the corporate strategy while at the same time future proofing the council and paving the way for my successor in due course”.

He added: “I sincerely hope that everyone here can work together going forward and while we will remain 13 individuals who will by their nature have differing opinions, which is fine, we need to ensure that political differences are put to one side and we work together to strive for the betterment of Alton and its people.”

In outlining the council’s priorities for the next 12 months, Mr Hicks flagged up the town council’s role in the preparation of the development brief for the Molson Coors brewery site and in particular the proposal to include a ‘community facility’ in the plan.

“Replacement of the community centre has been an aspiration of this council and Altonians for many years, and it is included within the newly-adopted neighbourhood plan. If is, therefore, incredibly pleasing to have an opportunity to see this project finally gaining momentum through this consultation,” he said.

In addition, Mr Hicks wanted to see the replacement of Alton Sports Centre, for which there is likely, he believes, to be a public consultation early in 2017.

He was keen also to focus on the effective management of the town’s open spaces through the creation of site-specific management plans and on the development of “planting, seating and aesthetics to reflect the function of purpose of each area” – an initiative which is already under way, with the Market Square being the next area to receive a facelift in the form of a new planting scheme for the summer.

The year would also expect to see the recruitment of an additional grounds team apprentice, and the Public Gardens is to see improvements to the footpaths, the planting of a sensory garden to commemorate the Queen’s 90th birthday, and the creation of a garden of remembrance.

The plan is also, through the policy and resources committee, to develop a new member development policy based on the priorities defined in the town council’s recently-adopted corporate strategy, the aim being to give new members the opportunity to progress and take on more responsibilities at committee level, he said.

Mr Hicks will be supported in his role by deputy leader Mike Dicker, while the leader of the ppposition (Lib Dems) was named as Pam Jones.