Tribute paid to stalwart councillor
THE FUNERAL has taken place of former wellknown solicitor, borough and county councillor, David Inman.
A founder member of the reconfigured Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council Mr Inman remained a civic servant to the community right up until his death on Friday August 18.
He was 81 and is survived by wife Celia, grownup children and grandchildren.
A memorial service took place at St Catherine’s Church in Burbage on Tuesday following a committal at The Heart of England Crematorium.
Stuart Bray, leader of the Liberal Democrat group for Hinckley and Bosworth, paid tribute to Mr Inman, detailing his commitment to public service.
He said: “He served in the final year of the old Hinckley Urban District Council being elected in 1972 and was a founder member of the new Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council which in its early years faced bringing together the Hinckley and Market Bosworth councils and the challenge of taking forward what was then the new leisure centre on Coventry Road. He served as chairman of the housing committee and was a member of Leicestershire County Council serving from 1973 to 1977 where he took many stands on behalf of the people he represented.
“He returned to the borough council in 2007 after a gap of 30 years with the memorable words “I said I would be back” and in spite of increasing physi- cal disability served until 2015, continuing to play an active role, particularly championing the cause of those with disabilities.”
Born in Birmingham and an ardent Aston Villa fan, Mr Inman also pursued higher political office standing as the Liberal parliamentary candidate in Nuneaton and twice in Blaby where he opposed Nigel Lawson who was to become the Chancellor of the Exchequer.
In the mid 1980s while taking a break from borough duties he was a driving force behind the reformation of the Burbage Parish Council which had ceased to exist when the old Hinckley UDC was created.
A Burbage resident, he was an active force in the village, serving as deacon at the Higham Way Baptist Church before becoming a lay reader and regular member of St Catherine’s Church.
Having pushed for the recreation of the parish body Mr Inman was elected as a founding member in 1986 and remained as a parish councillor prior to his death.
Cllr Bray said: “Peter Hall, the first chairman of the newly created Burbage Parish Council said that Burbage would always be indebted to him for his contribution to the community.
“Many residents of Hinckley will also remember David as a popular local solicitor, originally as a partner at Geoffrey Hill and Co , and then subsequently with his own firm, David Inman and Co on Station Road. In total he spent over 30 years representing the people of the town and borough. He will be sorely missed by all who knew him.”