One of Oxenhope Parish Council's longest serving councillors, who stepped down from his post this month, has expressed thanks to his former colleagues.

Chris Brown, who was an Oxenhope parish councillor for 12 years, said: "I've done a lot of jobs in the last 33 years but my 12 years on this parish council have been really good. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

"Although many of the people are the same, the council is very different to what it was when it started. When I joined, there was still a residue of conflict between residents and parish councillors.

"Now the council is elected without contest and this shows people accept it and believe it is acting on their behalf."

He said the council could take credit for an enormous list of achievements, including the Millennium Green project, cleaning up Marsh Common, putting together a parish plan and improving traffic safety. He acknowledged the support he had received over the years from members of the parish council. Cllr Neal Cameron responded by thanking him for his service.

Cllr Cameron was re-elected chairman. Cllr Tony Maw was nominated for the vice-chairman's post and subsequently voted in.

Last Thursday's meeting was also attended by two new parish councillors - Paula Berry and David Ashcroft.

n Cllr Ashcroft said it was important to promote the council's new website.

He said the site, which was activated earlier this year, should hopefully become a key resource for everyone in the village. The site, at www.oxenhopeparishcouncil.gov.uk, offers a range of contact details and information on local facilities and community groups.

n Oxenhope's allotments will soon benefit from two grants, totalling more than £5,500.

Cllr Pauline Bedford said Bradford Vision had agreed to award a total of £5,046.19. She added this would be complemented by a £500 grant from the Sir George Martin Trust.

"We can spend the money on the allotments more or less as we wish," she said. "It does mean we'll be able to do a really good job for the allotment holders." Cllr Bedford said the cash would go towards better path surfacing, additional taps and a new gate.

She offered her thanks to everyone who had helped submit the application for the money. She said if the allotmentholders approved, the improvement work should begin as soon as possible.