Girls from the 1st Okehampton Brownies and Rainbows met the town’s mayor, Bob Tolley, at the council chambers on Tuesday last week.

The girls, aged four to 11, were given a tour of the council chambers along with an explanation of a council’s work. They were also shown the mayor’s official chain, robes and hat and the town clerk’s and macebearers’ robes.

The girls then took squash and biscuits with the mayor and at the end of the evening Cllr Bob Tolley presented eight girls with their promise badges.

Nicola Street, Rainbow and Brownie leader, said: ‘A great night was had by all,’ a thought echoed by the mayor himself.

‘It was a delightful evening and I think they enjoyed themselves. They were very interested in whether my badge was plastic,’ he said.

‘I’m just delighted to do something for the young people and always happy to do something for the community.’

Cllr Christine Marsh, town clerk Emma James and assistant Abi Horn also attended the evening.

Cllr Marsh said: ‘It was really nice and they were really interested.’

The town council are keen to get younger people involved in local politics and Cllrs Tolley and Marsh hope that the event will encourage some of the girls to get involved.

Cllr Marsh pointed out the importance of getting to know one’s local area.

‘It’s not only about getting them involved but getting them to know their town. We have a council building and it belongs to the town. It’s their heritage,’ she added.

Cllr Tolley said: ‘Who knows maybe someone will step up one day.’

At last week’s council meeting, Emma James said that she had attended a session on encouraging young people to become councillors at which ‘speed dating with councillors’ was suggested as a possible way to achieve this.

Pictured above Okehampton’s Rainbows and Brownies had squash and biscuits with the town’s mayor on Tuesday last week (October 12).