Luke Chilman and Peter Copley co-opted onto Stamford Town Council

Two new people have been chosen to represent residents of a town.

Luke Chilman, who works at Stamford Arts Centre in St Mary’s Street, and Peter Copley, a retired chartered surveyor who lives in St Mary’s Street, were both chosen to join Stamford Town Council on Tuesday.

Luke, who provided tourist information when it was based at Stamford Arts Centre, before becoming ‘front of house’, stood for election to St Mary’s Ward in August but was unsuccessful.

On Tuesday evening he was among four other candidates for the All Saints South Ward seat, who pitched to existing councillors before they voted for who they wanted to win.

Voting was close and it took three rounds before Luke received the majority he needed.

Four candidates were then in the running for a St George’s Ward seat. Two were eliminated in the first voting round, and the second was tied.

In line with council procedures, Mayor of Stamford Kelham Cooke cast the deciding vote, selecting Peter to join the council.

Peter has recently retired after 32 years of living in Stamford and commuting to London. His expertise is in property and planning rules, and he has knowledge of some of the town’s historic buildings.

What would you like the new councillors to help Stamford Town Council achieve? Share your views in the comments below.