CLIVE Hooper has been chosen as the new mayor of Malvern.

He was voted into the role by town councillors last night (Thursday, May 18) ahead of Nick Houghton, who was hoping for a third term as mayor.

Cllr Hooper, ahead of the vote, said he had been a councillor for four years, serving as chairman of the policy and resources committee for much of that time and as deputy mayor for the past two years.

“I stood aside a year ago when I learned Cllr Houghton wanted to stand again, but now it’s time for a change,” he said.

Following the vote, he was quick to pay tribute to Cllr Houghton.

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“Thank you for looking after the interests of the town,” said Cllr Hooper.

“The role of mayor is an important one and I’ll try my best to fulfill the requirements as I see them.”

Cllr Houghton said: “A huge congratulations to Cllr Hooper on being elected as mayor of Malvern.

“I wish him all the best in the role and look forward to working with him for his term of office.”

David Watkins will serve as deputy mayor for next 12 months, after he was chosen ahead of new councillor Anne Cherry.

“I was elected eight years ago with one thing on my mind - to improve the facilities in Victoria Park,” he told councillors last night.

“And that’s something we’re still working on - the wheels of local government turn slowly at Malvern Town Council.

“We have an annual budget here of around £75,000 and we should be getting out into the community, telling people where it’s spent.”

Cllr Cherry said she’d been inspired to join the council after watching a video by former town councillor Cynthia Palmer encouraging more women to become councillors.

“I run a gardening business and know an awful lot of people in Malvern,” she said. “I also run an AirBnB and am always telling people to move to Malvern.”

The council, which has 14 members following the local elections, will be looking to co-opt new councillors in the coming months.