A fresh new year is once again upon us.

It’s the time to be thankful for the blessings of the past year, an opportunity to take stock of our achievements and to plan for the future.

The transfer of the ceremony room to the council chamber within the Town Hall is proving a great success and one we wish to build upon during 2017.

We have many exciting projects planned for the year ahead.

The most ambitious of which is the submission of a formal expression of interest and business case regarding a community asset transfer of Cockermouth Library on Main Street.

The objective of our proposal is to ensure the long-term provision of a library service in Cockermouth while creating a hub of public services to benefit residents, businesses and visitors.

Cumbria County Council will decide on this issue in February 2017.

We as town councillors will be re-considering our decision not to produce a neighbourhood plan early in the New Year.

On a personal note I am very pleased that Isabel Burns and Julie Laidlow are resurrecting the carnival this year and sad that Double Mills Youth Hostel closed its doors for the final time on December 1.

I have greatly enjoyed my mayoral year to date, particularly meeting and greeting members of local organisations and members of the public at the functions I have attended.

Happy New Year everyone.