The Mayor

The Mayor is the first citizen of the Town, who acts as the civic head of the Town Council and, in their capacity as Chair of Council, chairs the Council meetings. The Mayor is the public face of the Council and attends the civic and community functions on behalf of the Council. As the First Citizen, the Mayor is a symbol of the authority of the Council and it is his or her duty to represent and promote the interests and welfare of the Town and all those who live, work and visit the Town. The Mayor gives recognition, appreciation and encouragement to all those groups and individuals who contribute to the life of the Town. The Mayor is elected amongst the councillors at the Annual Town Council Meeting in May each year and is assisted by a Deputy Mayor, who is also elected by the Council.

Chair of Council

As Chair of the Council, it is the Mayor's duty to uphold the rights of Councillors and the interests of the community and to efficiently carry out the business of the Council. As Chair of Council, the Mayor has the casting vote, in case of equality of votes at the council meetings. As per the Bradley Stoke Town Council Standing Orders, the Chair and Vice-Chair of Council are also ex-officio member of all committees of the Council and the Chair of Council acts as the line-manager for the Town Clerk, who is the chief officer of the Council.

Current Mayor/Chair of Council

The new Mayor/Chair of Council, Councillor Tony Griffiths was elected at the Annual Town Council Meeting on 11th May 2022.

Councillor Tony Griffith has been a sitting councillor in Bradley Stoke since 2011 (currently representing the Bradley Stoke, North ward). Tony was an architectural technician and he served with the Royal Observer Corp, taking active part in the Far East operations. With his family, he ran two pubs and three restaurants. Tony worked as hospitality and facilitators manager for many years, and currently works as a Logistics Inspector, whilst fulfilling his council duties. For the Mayor's Charities for this year, Tony has decided to continue to support the Great Western Air Ambulance and St Peter's Hospice.

Cllr Tony Griffiths in his message said: “Firstly, I would like to thank the people of Bradley Stoke for re-electing me as a councillor for the third term. I have lived in Bradley Stoke for 17 years and I am delighted that the members of the Council have chosen me to be the mayor for a second term. Due to the pandemic, all events were cancelled during my first term and council didn't think it was fair that I had a non-event year.

I come from an Architectural Technician background, and had a period in the military, followed by successful roles in business and hospitality. Five days before being appointed mayor, I was delighted to receive a civic honour of the Order of St George, for my 37 years of charity work, 11 years of military service and 11 years as an unpaid councillor.

I am looking forward and will continue to act for and help the people of Bradley Stoke in this role. I would particularly like to support any local initiatives and organisations and would welcome invitations to attend any functions or events you have planned.

Should you see me around the Town please stop and say 'hi', I will be pleased to offer my assistance wherever possible. I shall be listening to the wishes of the constituents and will apply their wishes wherever practical and economically possible.

We are so lucky to have such a lovely town of Bradley Stoke, however there are always room for improvement. The Conservative party administration of the council brought many good community projects and development programmes to the town, whilst keeping tax precepts low. And I am eager to continue that and progress further with the support of our councillor colleagues and staff.”

Invite the Mayor

The Mayor frequently visits a wide variety of different events within the community, from school visits, charity programmes, coffee mornings to formal dinners and ceremonies. Please feel free to invite the Mayor to take part in your event, such as a competition, presenting prizes or certificates, drawing a raffle, making an opening or closing speech or welcome a dignitary or to attend various anniversaries and other functions.

If you are interested in inviting the Mayor to your event, please complete and return the Invitation Form (Word). Please enclose the essential details of the event such as what the event is, the date and time, the venue address and the Mayor's involvement. You can also email your request, telephone or write to us. On receipt, we will contact you in due course to confirm whether the Mayor is available. If for any reason the Mayor is unable to attend, your invitation will be passed to the Deputy Mayor if deemed appropriate.

Past Mayors/Chairs of Bradley Stoke

Tribute to Councillor Michael Hill

Michael John Hill was born and educated in North London. He initiated his career in a weekly newspaper, moving on to become a press officer of London Transport. Michael spent most of his career on media duties with the Ministry of Defence. At different times, he was head of public relations at the Royal Air Force Headquarters at High Wycombe and latterly at the Royal Navy's Fleet Headquarters at Northwood. His travels took him from Hong Kong to the Falkland Islands and from the West Indies to the Persian Gulf.

Cllr Michael started his political innings at the London Borough of Barnet in 1974 and served as a Borough Councillor at Barnet for 12 years. Afterwards, he moved to Northampton and served on Northampton Borough Council for 18 years, where he was Mayor in 2009-10. He served four years as a Northamptonshire County Councillor from 2005 to 2009 as well.

Michael and his wife Margaret moved to Bradley Stoke in 2017 and lived near Baileys Court. He could often be seen walking his cockapoo 'Poppy' in the area. He was very fond of exploring the natural landscapes of Switzerland. His other hobbies include railways, photography, and football.

In 2019, Cllr Michael Hill was elected to the Bradley Stoke Town Council, representing the South Ward.

His Mayoral charities for 2021/22 were 'Dogs for Good', which is a life-transforming national charity, creating partnerships between people living with disability and specially trained assistance dogs and 'St Peter's Hospice', which is a local charity that provides care and support to adults who are living with a progressive life-limiting illness in the West of England region.