The Mayor of Bridport said he was proud to be a resident, councillor and mayor of the town as he summarised what has been a busy year, recovering from Covid and coping with the cost-of-living crisis. 

Cllr Ian Bark was speaking at Bridport's annual town meeting held in the town hall last week.

Now in his last few months of his three-year term as mayor, Cllr Bark said there had been several occasions in the past 12 months that had made him particularly proud, one being the way that residents had been selflessly helping others through the coronavirus pandemic, energy crisis and the way the community had reacted to the war in Ukraine and offered support to refugees.

He said: "Bridport always shows amazing generosity to those less fortunate and never has that been more evident than in its response to Ukraine."

He acknowledged that these were challenging times for many said Bridport was a "resilient town" and he spoke about some of the support services available to those in need. 

Cllr Bark also expressed gratitude to those who had supported campaigns to make Bridport more environmentally friendly, in particular businesses that has backed his campaign to see the town using sustainable palm oil. 

He reported that, thanks to the support received, Bridport could now become the first sustainable palm oil town in the country.

The mayor said that hosting his civic day in December was another particularly proud moment, as he used the event to celebrate and showcase the town's young people and youth facilities, saying that visiting dignitaries were "blown away"

Cllr Bark said he was also "proud and humbled" to have made the proclamation of the succession of King Charles III in Bridport, shortly after the death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.

Cllr David Rickard, leader of Bridport Town Council, agreed it had been a busy and eventful year as the authority recovered from Covid, undertook new projects and continued working on long-term aspirations. 

He said that two issues had dominated council business over the last year – the community governance review which will amalgamate surrounding parish councils of Allington, Bothenhampton & Walditch and Bradpole with to create one single town council with Bridport, and the ongoing Foundry Lea housing development. 

Town clerk Will Austin then presented a short video of some of the highlights of the past 12 months, including many community events and festivals. 

A number of local organisations that had received grants from the town council in the past year were represented at the meeting, with many giving short presentations on the work of their club, organisation or charity. 

These included 2020 Skate & Ride (indoor skatepark), Citizens Advice, Bridport Arts Centre, Bridport Leisure Centre, Bridport Youth & Community Centre, Bridport Museum, and Bridport Area Development Trust, which all received larger grants from the council, as well as several groups that received smaller grants.