Ross-on-Wye mayor Ed O’Driscoll has praised the hard work and patience of the town council staff in his report to the Ross-on-Wye Parish AGM (March 2).

He thanked staff for their contributions in achieving the council’s goals over the last 12 months. Speaking on  his report he noted that the team had kept him on the straight and narrow with their good humour and understanding.

Aside from the council’s usual activities, the last year had presented some unique challenges, including the Jubilee celebrations in June and the death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II in September.

He said these events required a huge amount of work to ensure that the necessary protocols were followed.

Mayor Ed recalled how the team had already begun working on preparations for the accession proclamation just a few hours after the announcement of the Queen’s death.

Despite these challenges, the mayor noted that the council was not in a position to rest on its laurels. Plans were already underway to celebrate the upcoming coronation in style, with the mayor confident that the town council would rise to the occasion.

During his report, he also highlighted some of the council’s key achievements over the past year.

The amenities committee had secured funding for a new playground in North Ward, as well as improvements to existing parks and facilities for disabled users. The skate park was also set to receive much-needed improvements in this year.

The Planning Committee had overseen significant resurfacing projects across the town, while the finance and property committee had made progress on the market house repairs. A big highlight for previous mayor Cllr John Winder’s speech was the announcement a £350,000 grant which had been received from the Extraordinary Market Town Fund.

Cllr O’Driscoll said: “Final designs for phase two of the market house repairs were commissioned and have been received. We have now engaged the services and external fundraiser and we will be applying for a range of potential funders over the coming weeks. This project has taken considerable time, but the last 12 months have seen significant progress and we’re now hopeful work will be able to commence in the coming months.”

The report painted a picture of a council that was hardworking, dedicated, and focused on delivering results.