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Christmas is a time to reflect and offer our best wishes to family and friends. It is also a time to think about those who may be on their own. Spare a thought for them and you may be able to extend a friendly hand or even involve them, if at all possible.

One of the things I love most about our borough is the community spirit. Last week I had the great pleasure of visiting the Ashford Volunteer Centre to present them with a certificate of recognition, thanking them for the outstanding work and contribution they make.

There are many other organisations and unsung individuals who do a great deal on behalf of their local community and I would like to thank every one one of them for their kindness.

The latest tourism figures, produced by Visit Kent, make pleasant reading for Ashford. They show that last year visits to Ashford rose to 4.3 million trips, with 3.9 million day trips and nearly half a million overnight visits.

This has produced a 6% increase in spend, and tourism jobs in the borough rose by 3.54% to 5,432. This represents about 1 in 10 jobs created in Ashford. The total value of tourism to us was some £278m.

We can be proud of the significant contribution the whole borough, including our beautiful rural areas with attractions such as the Kent and East Sussex Railway and the recently launched Tenterden wine trail, makes to Kent’s tourism economy.

I am sure that most people can see the strong symbols that indicate that Ashford is on the move. According to retail intelligence analysts Springboard there are fewer empty shops than there have been for many years. The vacancy rate is just 8.9%, compared to 18.9% in April 2013, and the national average of 9.5%.

I realise that there remains a great deal still to be achieved and we are certainly not complacent, but even our more vociferous critics are recognising that we are having some successes. Next year will no doubt bring new challenges to add to those still remaining, but we are determined to tackle them all.

Finally, do enjoy this Christmas break with family and friends and may I take this opportunity of behalf of Ashford Borough Council, to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a happy, healthy, peaceful and prosperous new year.