Malmesbury has elected a new town mayor.

At its annual meeting – held virtually for the first time on May 5 – Malmesbury Town Council elected Cllr Campbell Ritchie as the new mayor of the town with Cllr Paul Smith as his deputy.

Cllr Campbell Ritchie said: “It is a great honour to be elected as mayor of Malmesbury.

“I am looking forward to representing our fantastic town to the best of my ability.

“I feel very lucky to have become mayor of a town with so much history, identity and character.”

While there will be no mayor-making ceremony this year, both Cllr Ritchie and Cllr Smith were ‘sworn in’ to office on Tuesday, May 19.

The newly elected mayor added that the year ahead might not be a ‘typical mayoral year’ as challenges from Covid-19 persist.

He continued: “I am proud of the response Malmesbury Town Council has made to establish a partnership with local charity HEALS to support our residents and we expect this activity will continue for some months to come.

“I am also working closely with Malmesbury Town Team to give support to our brilliant local businesses and high street as lockdown is reduced.

“Through it all, I hope we can have opportunities for fun as a town in the year ahead. We might have to be physically distant for a while but this shouldn’t mean becoming socially remote!

“Malmesbury Town Council has some great virtual community events coming up, such as St Aldhelm’s Day on May 25 and our Citizen of the Years Awards on May 28, which we can all enjoy.”