Mayor of Grantham says he 'will be back' after taking break from duties due to health

The Mayor of Grantham confirmed he 'will be back' after taking a break from his duties on health grounds.

Councillor Dean Ward, who received his chains of office last September, announced last week that he had reluctantly decided to take a step back for a couple of months.

He is aiming to be back towards the end of November.

Coun Ward took on the role of mayor in September 2020 and will be in the mayoral post for 20 months rather than the usual 12 months after the traditional mayor making ceremony was postponed from May until September last year due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

He has been recovering this year after suffering a stroke in January and was taken to the Queen’s Medical Centre in Nottingham where he was treated for a blood clot on the brain.

Coun Ward said: “I’ll be back soon. I am just taking a breather. I took on too much but South Kesteven District Council (SKDC) are being fantastic and fully understand. Admittedly, the Mayors role is not exactly back breaking work but it can get stressful. It just shows that I’m not bulletproof. I’ll be back.”

The Grantham Charter Trustees wish Mayor Dean Ward a full and speedy recovery.