Dorchester's new town clerk revealed (From Dorset Echo)

Dorchester's new town clerk revealed

3:16pm Thursday 7th March 2013 in News

DORCHESTER’S town clerk is set to hand over the reins after more than 26 years in the post.

Adrian Stuart has been revealed today as the new clerk for the county town and will take over from long serving incumbent Dennis Holmes.

Mr Stuart has spent over 20 years in local government and is currently director of corporate services for West Dorset District Council and Weymouth and Portland Borough Council.

The 49-year-old, who lives in Winterborne Kingston, will take up the post of town clerk designate on June 3 and spend a month working alongside Mr Holmes at Dorchester Town Council before his predecessor bids farewell on June 30.

Mr Holmes said his highlights over the years include the refurbishment of the Borough Gardens and the delivery of Sandringham Sports Centre.

He said: “It’s a rewarding role as the town council is very significant in Dorchester.

“People know and value the services that we provide and it’s really rewarding to be able to contribute towards the provision of those services that all help make Dorchester an even nicer place to live and work in and to visit.”

Mr Stuart said he felt one of Mr Holmes’ greatest achievements during his time in office was the town’s skate park, which had offered something for the young people in the town.

He said he was looking forward to the challenge that his new role was going to offer.

Mr Stuart said: “It was nice to apply for the role knowing it had been done well over an extended period of time.

“Dorchester is a fantastic place and it’s changing when you look at Brewery Square and Poundbury and even the potential development at Charles Street.

“It is certainly evolving and growing and part of the challenge is to make sure that, although it’s changing, all the good bits that Dennis has put in place always stay the same.”

He added: “Helping an already strong town council to shape how we respond to the opportunity presented by growth, but also helping our community to cope with the pressures that will increasingly be evident on public services and jobs, represents a fresh and exciting challenge for me.”

Chairman of the town council’s policy committee Trevor Jones, who led the recruitment process for the new town clerk, paid tribute to the departing Mr Holmes and backed his successor to rise to the challenge of the role.

He said: “Adrian was appointed on merit from a strong field of candidates following national advertisement. "Some of us know him, of course, from his time with West Dorset District Council, and he has many strengths which we know he will exert for the benefit of the people of Dorchester. “We look forward to working with him and, together, taking the development of the facilities which the town council provides to the next stage.

“It would be remiss, though, not to pay tribute to the outstanding work that Dennis Holmes has done since he joined us in April 1987. “Dorchester is a very different place now to what it was then, and he has helped the council to deliver a host of improvements during his time here. “The best known one is probably the refurbishment of the Borough Gardens, but that is a very long way from being all he has achieved and we are very grateful to him.”