Cllr. Mark Wilson has been elected as the new Mayor for Penarth, taking over duties from Cllr Angela Thomas.
Mark represents Stanwell Ward and is a member of the Welsh Labour group. He served as Deputy Mayor in 2019/2020.
The Town Mayor is elected each year by members at the Council’s annual meeting. As Mayor, Mark will become the ‘First Citizen’ of Penarth. This means: performing ceremonial duties, acting as the public face of the Council and representing the Council at official and community events. Cllr Ian Buckly, who was elected as this years Deputy Mayor, noted that this would be the town’s first ever virtual Mayor, given the current circumstances relating to COVID-19.
On being elected Mark said:
“On behalf of Penarth Town Council please can I thank the ex Town Mayor Cllr Angela Thomas for her outstanding work throughout her civic year, notably raising money for her charity the National Autistic Society. Once we reach a situation, where circumstances change we hope to celebrate the ex Town Mayoral civic year at a future meeting of the Town Council. I am very excited to take on the role and I am planning some imaginative ways to be present and raise money given the current Covid-19 situation. Watch this space!”
As well as dedicating time to town activities the Mayor is also responsible for raising money for a charity of their choice.Cllr Mark Wilson has chosen to raise money for LATCH Welsh Children’s Cancer Charity and Welsh Hearts :
“ I have chosen to work with LATCH who do some outstanding work in children’s hospitals for wales, where they help out not just the patients but also offer help to the parents. They also offer social work service and as well as giving financial support.
As an individual who has gone through a lot of my own heart problems. I’m also raising money for Welsh Hearts because I want to raise awareness for people that may not know they have a heart condition. I an very concerned about making sure people are screened at a young age. Welsh Hearts also provide public defibrillators, CPR training and conduct heart screenings. Recently, not far from here, someone was saved by a public defibrillator and I think it’s important for people to understand how make a big difference defibrillators and training can make.”