THE LIBERAL Democrats won all three of Frome’s seats on Somerset County Council in the local council elections last week. But the Conservatives narrowly retained control of the council, winning an overall majority of just one.
In Frome, Alvin Horsfall has been elected for Frome East, Sam Phripp has been elected for Frome North, and Derek Tanswell was elected in the Frome West division.
Overall the Conservatives have retained control of the council. They won 28 seats (down 7 from 2009), Liberal Democrats 18 (down 3 from 2009), Labour 3 (up 1 from 2009), UKIP 3 (0 seats in 2009) and Independents 2 (0 seats in 2009). One division (Coker) will be contested at a later date due to the death of a candidate.
Frome’s three councillors have re-iterated their determination to represent the town in the county council, and make sure Frome gets its fair share of funding.
Alvin Horsfall, re-elected for Frome East, and says that the main priority of the Frome councillors is to get the best for their town. He said, “I think with Frome, being so far away from Taunton, it’s always been difficult whatever the administration. We just have to keep Frome at the forefront for any resources available.
“I think we [the LibDems] will obviously talk to each other, as a group we have group priorities, but essentially I was elected to look after the people of my division.”
Aged just 21, newly elected councillor Sam Phripp is researching if he is the youngest councillor to ever be elected to Somerset County Council. While he believes it is important to get younger people involved in the council, he says this is also true for any group that is under-represented. He said, “I think it’s a key thing, we need more different people getting involved – the more different people we have the better chance we have of representing everyone.”
Derek Tanswell says his priority is to continue with his campaign to get a doctor on call overnight in Frome. He said, “Obviously we will represent our divisions, but what we need to do is to work together to get the best results for Frome.”
![Town-wide programme brings month of social activities in May
A month-long programme of activities and events is set to take place across the town in May as part of an initiative encouraging residents to connect with themselves, each other and local places.
The scheme, Frome Connects, will run throughout the month and includes a mix of social activities, creative events and informal meet-ups in community spaces.
Highlights include the return of Dress Up Fridays, which began during lockdown and invites people to wear formal clothing or fancy dress and turn the town into their catwalk each Friday.
Set-piece moments include a Kate Bush-themed flashmob (Running Up That [Catherine] Hill) on 30th May, followed by a bell peal at St John’s Church where the bells will play Running Up That Hill.
There will also be a whole-town drone photo on Friday 30th May, with everyone encouraged to ‘look up’ at around 12.30pm.
Read more on our website, the link is in our bio.
Pictured: l-r Jenny Hartnoll and Ginny Adams](https://scontent-lhr6-1.cdninstagram.com/v/t51.82787-15/684201964_18069463433653265_2722712448142239347_n.jpg?stp=dst-jpg_e35_tt6&_nc_cat=109&ccb=7-5&_nc_sid=18de74&efg=eyJlZmdfdGFnIjoiRkVFRC5iZXN0X2ltYWdlX3VybGdlbi5DMyJ9&_nc_ohc=lpPD1lkIpzUQ7kNvwGc5hdb&_nc_oc=Adpzr2hnI58mBzDyMxcnkdK_pr7-84FAARfoTk3dgtKJKwIbvYouQytEkAdXpaUAvxU&_nc_zt=23&_nc_ht=scontent-lhr6-1.cdninstagram.com&edm=ANo9K5cEAAAA&_nc_gid=QKz5uslOl1wFJGffej9rcQ&_nc_tpa=Q5bMBQEhS3JmIIRGVtdvc7NeDg-szHPgOZvSeqR7PYflJsqm1cp0XCNujCDPTyODWI0mmJV4mujraOr9&oh=00_Af2_0pgXuakjMTfphq9JSx7v6C2RU__qPFT1d7jQmFh5EA&oe=69F7C6AA "Town-wide programme brings month of social activities in May
A month-long programme of activities and events is set to take place across the town in May as part of an initiative encouraging residents to connect with themselves, each other and local places.
The scheme, Frome Connects, will run throughout the month and includes a mix of social activities, creative events and informal meet-ups in community spaces.
Highlights include the return of Dress Up Fridays, which began during lockdown and invites people to wear formal clothing or fancy dress and turn the town into their catwalk each Friday.
Set-piece moments include a Kate Bush-themed flashmob (Running Up That [Catherine] Hill) on 30th May, followed by a bell peal at St John’s Church where the bells will play Running Up That Hill.
There will also be a whole-town drone photo on Friday 30th May, with everyone encouraged to ‘look up’ at around 12.30pm.
Read more on our website, the link is in our bio.
Pictured: l-r Jenny Hartnoll and Ginny Adams")
