Town Council News – May 2025 – Ilfracombe postings

Happy Spring!

As we all enjoy this remarkable stretch of beautiful weather (and before we start worrying about a possible drought!), I wanted to catch you up on some recent decisions and discussions taking place in the Ilfracombe Town Council (ITC). As always, if you have any questions, concerns, and/or input about these or other issues, please email me at my Town Council email (neil.basil@ilfracombetowncouncil.gov.uk) or my email created specifically for communication with constituents (neilbasilgrn@gmail.com).

Committee Assignments

Now that there is a full roster of elected or selected Councillors, committee assignments for the coming year were addressed at the May Town Council meeting. I am now serving on the Finance and General Purpose committee. This group addresses operational and policy issues related to the Council’s finances, resources, and land. Examples of the kinds of issues this committee has dealt with recently include: ownership transfer and running of public facilities to be taken over by the ITC (currently in process), bus shelters, and the status of the High Street car park.

So if you have issues you would like raised, or questions about these or other related issues under the purview of this committee, please do not hesitate to get in touch with me. You can find the minutes for this committee (to see past and pending business) on the Council website at: https://ilfracombetowncouncil.gov.uk/your-council/committee-agendas-minutes/#Finance

New Town Mayor

Town Councillor Mark Fay – who was the sole nominee – was elected Mayor at the April full council meeting (effective May 2025). Councillor June Williams was elected as Deputy Mayor. The term of office for both is one year.

Annual Town Meeting

The annual town meeting took place on April 30. You can see information about this meeting at: https://ilfracombetowncouncil.gov.uk/annual-town-meeting-2025/. The Mayor, and the various Town Council Committees provided annual report summaries. Also reporting was Inspector Richard Preston of the Devon & Cornwall Police, providing the annual Ilfracombe Police Report.

Mayor Dan Turton reported on important achievements and events of the past year, as well as projections for what is to come. Some progress reported included the success of the Water Sport center, and the work hub ‘Luma’ at the Ilfracombe Centre. The popularity of the pirate-themed play area and the Into the Blue project for local children was also noted. In addition, the Mayor reported on the nearly completed construction of for new toilets and bus stop on the seafront. Challenges the town faces include cost of living increases and the closing of the Link Centre. Local community groups working to help those in need were noted, including One Ilfracombe, Poverty Truth Ilfracombe, Ilfracombe Futures and Ilfracombe Cultural Group. The impact of devolution and what that will mean for local services is also a challenge that will have to be met through community action and the work of elected Councillors at all levels. You can read the Mayor’s written annual summary at: https://ilfracombetowncouncil.gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/2024-2025-Annual-Report-Mayor-of-Ilfracombe.pdf

North Devon : Ilfracombe Harbour by Lewis Clarke is licensed under CC-BY-SA 2.0

On the Annual Meeting main webpage, there is a list of questions residents asked at the meeting or before via an online survey, with answers provided by linking to the question. (A sample question was: Q2. Can we have an update on derelict sites, especially the Premier Inn site?) So if there are local issues you have had questions about, you might be able to find the answers you are seeking here.

These annual meetings are always open to the public so plan on attending next April!

Devolution

After years of discussion, debate about Devolution & Local Government Reorganization (LGR) continues. The conversations about what this devolution will look like for our local government are taking place now and outcomes will mean significant changes for funding, local autonomy and control, and the accessibility of elected representatives. So inform yourselves and provide me your feedback on these issues. The Town Council obviously will not be making the final decisions on devolution decisions but does have the opportunity to provide input via our links with District and County Councillors representing Ilfracombe, so your voice can be heard. And now the Devon County Council includes Sara Wilson (Green Party) who will be a strong, conscientious, responsive voice for Ilfracombe as we navigate these tricky waters of restructuring. So contact me or Sara with your concerns and input.