Meet the new mayor of Felixstowe

By Richard Cornwell

NEW mayor of Felixstowe Joan Sennington is looking forward to a busy year ahead - hoping to meet as many of the town's residents and organisations as possible.

Mrs Sennington is due to be elected as mayor tonight by the town council, and takes over the office of first citizen from Ann Rodwell.

She said: “I am really looking forward to it and am quite excited.

“It really is a bit in at the deep end though because usually you have a year as deputy mayor and see a bit about what goes on, but with the deputy mayor Malcolm Minns standing down at the election I will be on a short learning curve.

“But I am really interested in meeting as many of the town's residents as I can, visiting the organisations and groups which play such an important role in its life, and I am sure there will be many special occasions in the next 12 months.

“We chose to come to live here and we really like it and I believe in putting something back into a community and serving as a councillor is a way of doing that.”

Mrs Sennington and her husband Norman moved to Felixstowe nine years ago from Middlesex after retiring - he had enjoyed a career specialising in anti-corrosion work in the shipping industry, and she had worked for part of her life as secretary to the director of a finance house.

She became involved in community life and is chairman of the League of Friends of Felixstowe Hospitals and the local branch of the Conservative Association.

In 2004 she was elected as a town and district councillor at a by-election and re-elected this month.

She serves on the plans and general purposes committees at the Town Hall, and is chairman of the green issues task group at Suffolk Coastal.

“It is a busy life as a councillor and this next year will be very busy indeed. We are very family orientated and go down to Middlesex to see our son and daughter and four grandchildren quite often,” she said.

“We will probably not be able to spend as much time with them as we would like over the next year but they understand that and hopefully they will come up and see us a few times.”

The new deputy mayor will be Mike Deacon.

n. Do you have a message of support for the new mayor? Write to Your Letters, Evening Star, 30 Lower Brook Street, Ipswich, IP4 1AN or email eveningstarletters@eveningstar.co.uk

CONSERVATIVES continue to hold control at Felixstowe Town Council.

The party picked up a seat from Labour in the north ward where former mayor Don Smith lost his seat, while the Liberal Democrats once again swept the west ward, where the only Conservative councillor lost his seat, though David Bentinck had previously stood in south ward.

Felixstowe Town Council election results:

Felixstowe East: Elected: *Doreen Savage (Con) 1,259; *Ann Rodwell (Con) 1,181; *Chris Slemmings (Con) 1,180. Not elected: Bernard Price (Lib Dem) 346; Hattie Bennett (Lab) 275; Bridget Danby (Lab) 224; Margaret Ridout (Lab) 184.

Felixstowe North: Elected: *Mike Deacon (Lab) 627; Angel Goodwin (Con) 599; John Goodwin (Con) 597. Not elected: Jan Garfield (Con) 581; *Don Smith (Lab) 505; David Rowe (Lab) 494.

Felixstowe South: Elected: *Cyril Webb (Con) 647; *Joan Sennington (Con) 642; Jon Garfield (Con) 599. Not elected: Pam Dangerfield (Lib Dem) 546; David Miller (Lib Dem) 492; Lee Reeves (Lib Dem) 443; Jane Bignell (Lab) 124; Marion Dix (Lab) 115; Alan Dunn (Lab) 112.

Felixstowe South-East: Elected *Andy Smith (Con) 981; Henryk Gorski (Con) 955; *Mike Stokell (Con) 918. Not elected: Andrew Yates (Lib Dem) 390; Heather Mullen (Lab) 301; John Mullen (Lab) 281; Peter Haymes (Lab) 236.

Felixstowe West: Elected: Sandra Bryant (Lib Dem) 760; *Harry Dangerfield (Lib Dem) 758; *Mike Ninnmey (Lib Dem) 722; Sheila Chambers (Lib Dem) 695. Not elected: Stuart Bird (Con) 397; *David Bentinck (Con) 379; Alexander Brook (Con) 369; Vanessa Wedge (Con) 349; Catherine Knight (Lab) 347; Dennis Carpenter (Lab) 341; Brendan Lambe (Lab) 318; Margaret Morris (Lab) 293.