Council are asked to:
a) Elect the Mayor of the Borough for the Municipal Year 2025-26; and
b) The Mayor to make the Declaration of Acceptance of Office.
Minutes:
The retiring Mayor, Councillor M Buck welcomed all members and guests to the Annual Meeting of the Council.
The Mayor gave a thank you speech as follows:
“Fellow councillors, officers, distinguished guest and above all the incredible people of Spelthorne.
Today, I stand before you for the final time as your Mayor. I do so, not only with farewell in my heart, but with humbleness, deep gratitude and with immense pride on what we have built and achieved together.
When I began this incredible journey as your Mayor, I remembered when I first wore the chain of office, I knew I was not just accepting a role in the Council, I was embracing a very important responsibility. On that day I made a solemn promise to serve with compassions, with integrity and with a deep commitment to every resident whilst focussing on the community and our beautiful borough. Today, as I conclude this chapter, I say with all humility that I kept my promises. Have not just performed my duties, but I safeguarded the values of this Borough with the highest regard. I honoured our traditions, I upheld our civic pride and I presided with utmost fairness, with dignity and respect.
For me, being Mayor is not about status or ceremony, it’s not about my personal enjoyment or taking any financial advantage. It’s about service to the community. All my community engagements were visible. My words were sincere. But most importantly my intentions were pure. I remained a-political throughout. I served not for recognition or applause, but with devotion to our people. It was a profound opportunity for me to give back to the community that embraced me with open arms and trusted me with their heart.
My mayoral year has been more than a year of public service. It has been a year of purpose. A year where stood not above the people, but with the people. I walked through every corner of Spelthorne, I shook hands not only with dignitaries, but with those who were deprived and often forgotten. I listed to the dreams, the concerns and learnt from the wisdom of our residents. From school children, our youth to our eldest citizen, some even over 103 years young, I saw in every face the beating heart of Spelthorne. Everyone holds a story, and every person deserves to be seen.
Together with the residents of Spelthorne, we celebrate our successes and achievements. This year we celebrated Spelthorne’s 50th Anniversary, making half a century of unitary, resilience and community service. We honoured our past, we embraced our present but we dare to imagine our future.
My mayoral year was filled with events, activities and celebrations which I have been updating you on throughout the year and thank you for your participation. However, I would like to mention a few highlights where we revived a forgotten tradition which was once an historical and civic pride linking the city of London to Staines which was the commemoration of the London Stone which is standing at the memorial garden in Staines by the side of the river. I had the privilege of welcoming the Lord Mayor of London and his delegation, coming by the river in tehri wonderful felt of flotillas rekindling an ancient bond that reminded us that Spelthorne has a rich history which we are very proud of.
Building community spirit was one of my focuses. We raised funds to support cases close to my heart, supporting not only my nominated charities but another fifteen charities, especially the quiet one, the small ones, the unsung heroes working in silence, et transforming lives of people every day. They reminded me that true service is not in the spotlight, but in the shadows where compassions meets action.
I also recognised nearly 20 dedicated individuals with the Spelthorne Civic Awards for their outstanding contribution to voluntary service and we also celebrated two other amazing groups recognised by the King with the Kings Aware for voluntary services. During my mayoral year, our unsung heroes were acknowledged with respect and dignity for going above and beyond serving the community as volunteers because we know they do it without any expectation, they do it just out of passion for their community.
The businesses in the Borough have been the lifeblood of our hight streets and the future of our economy. I had the honour of meeting many of you, opening a dozen of new businesses, celebrating excellence through our Business Awards, and planting the seeds of tomorrow’s entrepreneurs through our business plan competition. Your residence is an inspiration and I am eager to do more to champion our business community.
I also took great pride in reviving a relationship that was at risk of fading, the cherished friendships with our twinning towns. Over the years and after Brexit those bonds weakened but I put a lot of time and efforts to reignite that friendship with new energy and purpose. Last month we held a civic ceremony to celebrate 35 years of twinning with Melun and 15 years with Grand Port.
Today, we have moved beyond the symbolic friendship to a meaningful cooperation. We have been talking about business partnerships, cultural exchange, educational and sporting opportunities and more. Our twinning with our French and Mauritian partners is now stronger than ever and more exciting too. Tomorrow morning the Mayor who is to be elected tonight will be going to Melun for a weekend of friendships and celebrations with the French and their wider European twinning family. This is what we call unity and friendship reborn and I am proud of reviving this connection.
This year there were many events bringing people together in the Borough. We raised awareness on several health and environmental issues, we celebrated VE day, Staines-upon-Thames Day, Festival of Light and many more; we accomplished a lot for the community.
I will not measure my achievements by numbers or how much money we have raised. I will measure it by something deeper, how many hearts I touched, how many lives I uplifted, how many moments we created that reminded people they are not forgotten, that their life matters and that they are loved.
I leave this role knowing one eternal truth, nothing lasts forever. Yesterday, another Mayor sat in this chair, tomorrow another will take the chain. Every journey has a beginning and a destination. My journey as your mayor was never about where it will end. It was about service and the legacy we leave behind. Today I leave knowing that I served tirelessly, not for recognition but because it felt it was the right thing to do. This was not just a year of service, it was my mission, my sacred duty. I am honoured beyond words to have fulfilled this.
And whilst my time as mayor concludes, my mission continues. I will not step away, I will step forward. I will continue to listen, to advocate, to fight for what is just and I will continue to stand with the people of Spelthorne in unity, with respect and in hope.
To the people of Spelthorne, you are the soul of this Borough. Thank you for opening up your homes, your shops, your offices, your events and your hearts to e.
To all my fellow councillors and leaders of all political or independent groups, Councillors Sexton, Button, Boughtflower, Beecher and Nichols and to Councillor Bateson I want to thank you for your collaboration and support, I hope we had a great time together.
To our hard working officers, Daniel and his team, Lee, Terry and in particular to the Council’s Monitoring Officer, Linda Heron, Karen and her team and all officers and staff of the Council, I thank you for your unwavering support during my mayoral year.
To everyone who has walked this journey with me, my charity committee, my PA, council colleagues, deputy mayor, past mayors, volunteers, residents, community champions and all the distinguished guests in the gallery, thank you for supporting me throughout my mayoral year.
Finally, to my wife, Madhuri, thank you for being by my side throughout this journey and for supporting me every step of the way.
To conclude, during my mayoral year, I worked with humility to promote the greater god of our community whilst staying true to the principles of righteousness and service.
· I have not just marked time – I have made a difference
· I have not just celebrated – I have built something lasting
· And I have not just served – I have fulfilled a successful mission
May the spirit of unity, compassion and hope continue to guide Spelthorne’s future.
Thank you for giving me the opportunity to serve you.
May God bless you all and may God bless Spelthorne”.
It was moved by Councillor Button and seconded by Councillor Beecher that Councillor J Doran be appointed Mayor for the Municipal Year 2025-26
It was moved by Councillor Clarke and seconded by Councillor Boughtflower that Councillor Woodward be appointed Mayor for the Municipal Year 2025-26
In favour of Councillor J Doran - 19 votes
In favour of Councillor Woodward - 14 votes
Council resolved that Councillor J Doran be appointed Mayor for the Municipal Year 2025-26.
A short adjournment took place to hand over the robes and Badge of Office to the new Mayor.
Councillor J Doran made the Declaration of Acceptance of Office as Mayor of the Borough of Spelthorne and took the Chair. He presented Councillor Buck with his past Mayor’s Badge.
(Councillor J Doran, The Mayor, in the Chair)
The Mayor invited the retiring Mayor’s Consort, Mrs M Buck, to present his Consort with the Mayor’s Consort Badge. The Mayor then invited his Consort, Mrs S Doran, to present Mrs M Buck with the past Mayor’s Consort Badge.