A new mayor has been elected for Marlow.

Deputy mayor Chris Funnell took the chains from outgoing mayor Cllr Jocelyn Towns at the town council’s annual meeting last night.

He will be joined by Cllr Tim Avery, who was named the town’s deputy mayor.

Cllr Funnell said: “I’m incredibly proud, moved and honoured to stand here as elected mayor of Marlow.

“I take this responsibility and the confidence you’ve shown in me very seriously and will serve the people of Marlow to the best of my abilities with enthusiasm, compassion and devotion to our communities.”

He also thanked his family, particularly his children, for “providing me with the motivation, inspiration and support to take on this role”.

Talking about his predecessor, Cllr Funnell said: “A huge thanks has to go to Jocelyn.

“She has been absolutely fantastic to work for.”

Cllr Towns said: “He has been a fantastic deputy. Congratulations Chris, I know you will do a fantastic job and I look forward to supporting you over the next year.”

Cllr Funnell said his charity objectives for the next year were around mental health for young people and he hoped to announce in the next few weeks how he would be working with schools and charity partners to achieve these objectives.