Lyn Swindlehurst

Leek town mayor

I AM proud and humble to be elected Leek Town Mayor.

I pledge to do my best for all our communities, and welcome those that visit the town as friends.

Six generations of the Swindlehurst family have made Leek their home. Market gardeners, silk industry buyers, teachers, nurses. I am proud to follow in their footsteps.

My husband, daughter and sonin-law, and our two beautiful grandsons, live and work in Leek, and like so many ‘Leekensians’ they want to make it their ‘forever’ home.

The pandemic has left a heavy legacy on our town, and in our communities. We have lost loved ones to the virus and many are still battling the scourge of long covid.

The local economy continues to make efforts to rebuild, needing our support more than ever.

Despite the continuing success of the NHS vaccine programme, the future remains uncertain, with the continuing emergence of different strains of the virus in various parts of the country.

I would urge everyone to continue to follow public health guidelines.

Now, more than ever, we all need to be supporting each other.

I want us to all sign up to a strong message. I intend to be a clear voice that says Leek is a friendly, welcoming town.

It’s a long-held tradition that mayors have a ‘Mayor’s Charity’ fund. For the forthcoming year I shall be fund raising for two charities in particular.

Borderland Voices is a fantastic local organisation. For more than 20 years it has been supporting those with mental health issues.

Through the medium of arts such as painting, drawing, poetry, and prose, people come together, share their experiences, make friends, and are given the support they need in order to develop ways of coping and becoming stronger.

Throughout the pandemic volunteers have been reaching out through social media, Zoom meetings, and phone calls, to make sure users don’t become isolated.

Family Action is a national organisation that seeks to transform lives by providing practical, emotional and financial support to those who are experiencing poverty, disadvantage and social isolation. Locally, they support children and families through the provision of a range of initiatives.