To pass a vote of thanks to The Mayor in the following terms:
a) The Members of Council tender their grateful thanks to The Worshipful, The Mayor, Councillor Maddie Henson, for the courteous and efficient manner in which she presided over the Council’s deliberations during the past year;
b) The Members of Council record their sincere appreciation of the dignified manner in which Councillor Maddie Henson has carried out the traditional duties of the office of Mayor, of the support and encouragement which she and her Consort, Mr Mark Henson, have given to local organisations and of the prominent part they have taken in the social life of the Borough during the Mayor’s period of office; and
c) That this resolution be sealed and presented to the Mayor at the Annual Council Meeting in a suitable form.
Minutes:
The Mayor passed the Chair to the Deputy Mayor, Councillor Sherwan Chowdhury, who presided over the vote of thanks to the outgoing Mayor of Croydon.
The Deputy Mayor invited the Mayor to give her farewell address.
The Mayor commenced her address by congratulating Councillor Chowdhury on taking up his role of Mayor and expressed her personal thanks for the support that she had received from him over the last nine months. She was sure that he would shine in the role of Mayor.
The Mayor thanked everyone for giving her the chance to fulfil the role. Being the mayor of Croydon and being the youngest ever women to do so had been the honour of her life. For all mayors their year is always extraordinary. Each and every one brings some amazing contributions to the role, but they have not experienced the year that we have this year. So felt that it is important to reflect that.
The Mayor recounted how she was the first “virtual” mayor who was sworn in over Teams and how she took on the role knowing that it would be a difficult year. However, once lockdown began to ease in July the first mayoral event took place, The Mayor’s Reading Roadshow. People were able to come together in their “bubbles” for a picnic and to listen to Croydon’s amazing authors. Over 300 people attended.
September saw the anniversary of Operation Market Garden which had forever tied Croydon to its twin town of Arnhem. Although not able to attend in person, the first mayor for many years unable to do so, Croydon was able to hold its own small event. The Mayor personally thanked Seth, Councillor Toni Letts and Croydon’s Deputy Lieutenant, Ray Wilkinson for making it happen. Of particular note was the fact that it was possible to replicate the most moving part.
In December, the Mayor was able to work with Father Christmas to deliver present to Croydon’s children.
Particular thanks were given to members of her team, Stephanie Cope, Hema Vasanthakumar, Nick Evans and Luca Bercelli especially in the way that the mayor’s office adapted to a whole new way of working. With the help of Councillor Janet Campbell it was possible to host a live Facebook event with a panel of speakers who talked about their experience of death and dying to combat the stigma of talking about it. This was done with the help of one of the Mayor’s charities St Christopher’s Hospice. A further one will be taking place next month and the theme of people’s experiences of “coming out”.
Also highlighted Croydon Connected. With the help of Shelley Davies all Croydon schools were invited to take part in producing a giant paper chain recording their experiences of the past year. This has been presented to Croydon Museum.
At the start of her term of office the Mayor had outlined her theme of early life and the reason behind that choice. Videos were showcased especially for the day and thanks went out to everyone involved in producing those and to all those who took part.
The final event of the year will be the Baby and Toddler Festival which will be free for everyone to attend.
In her closing remarks, the Mayor paid personal thanks to group whips, who have all worked very hard to ensure the smooth running of the council meetings. Paid tribute to the Democratic Services Team particularly to Stephen Rowan who was a mentor and friend throughout the entire time.
Secondly to her amazing three charities, St Christopher’s Hospice, The Motor Neurone Disease Association and Homestart Croydon and to the valuable work that they all do.
The final thanks went to her family, her parents, her sister and brother-in-law, her children Theo and Liam and to her husband Mark. Also paid tribute to the extraordinary heroism shown by the people of Croydon including essential workers and volunteers, and the support given throughout the pandemic and that they continue to rise to all the challenges presented. She was proud to have taken the council through these very challenging times.
The Deputy Mayor thanked the Mayor for her address and invited the Leader, Councillor Hamida Ali to move the vote of thanks to the Mayor. In doing so she acknowledged that the year had been particularly challenging and that the usual role of the Mayor was not possible due to Covid. She reiterated Madam Mayor’s thanks to the essential workers including council staff who have been integral to supporting the community. Particularly highlighted was the Mayor’s success at adapting to the circumstances by holding so many events remotely to keep the connection with the community.
Also the Mayor raised some important issues throughout the year such as early years, death and dying and LGBTQ+ rights and achieved success in promoting and raising money for her chosen charities. It was also important to note the success that Madam Mayor had in chairing the virtual meetings and acknowledged that there were more meetings than would normally be expected in a municipal year.
The Leader concluded by inviting Members of Council to pay tribute to the Mayor, Councillor Henson.
The Deputy Mayor invited the Deputy Leader of the Opposition, Councillor Hale, to second the motion. Councillor Hale acknowledged that this had been a difficult year and that she was sure that is had not been the year that the Mayor was hoping for. In spite of all of the challenges, including recovering from Covid the list of online events was impressive and the Mayor was a passionate advocate for Croydon and for the excellent charities. Whilst the usual civic events could not take place the Mayor made up for that in the virtual world to support and connect with the people of Croydon.
The Deputy Mayor put the motion to the vote with the vote of thanks, which was passed unanimously in the following terms:
1. Members of Council tender their grateful thanks to The Worshipful, The Mayor, Councillor Maddie Henson, for the courteous and efficient manner in which she presided over the Council’s deliberations during the past year;
2. Member of the Council record their sincere appreciation of the dignified manner in which Councillor Maddie Henson has carried out the traditional duties of the office of Mayor, of the support and encouragement which she and her Consort, Mr Mark Hanson, have given to local organisations and of the prominent part they have taken in the social life of the Borough during the Mayor’s period of office;
and
3. That this resolution be sealed and presented to the Mayor at the Annual Council Meeting in a suitable form.