OKEHAMPTON Chamber of Trade is encouraging new members so it can have a stronger voice and create a vibrant business community.

Chairman Ian Bailey said he would like to boost the membership by more than 100 and provide more interest and diversity at the monthly meetings to reverse the downturn in attendance since the beginning of the foot and mouth crisis.

To this end the chamber has produced a questionnaire for the 70 existing members to find out how they think the meetings could be improved.

Mr Bailey said he hoped to put together a similar questionnaire for all the other traders in Okehampton to find out why they were not members.

'We need to change if we are going to move forward — large or small every business has a part to play in the community and I would like to see every trader in Okehampton on the books,' he said.

'If we do not know what businesses think and are concerned about, we cannot do anything about it — don't moan in your shop, come and moan to us.'

Meetings are currently held on the third Thursday of each month but the days may be changed to suit members.

It has also been suggested that the chamber is split into several groups which look into different issues such as the tourism industry, main street shops and promotion and marketing.

The organisation has recently joined forces with Okehampton Town Council to keep the town tidy and raise standards.

It believes a partnership approach will help the organisation when dealing with West Devon Borough Council and Devon County Council.

More social events, guest speakers and trips to different business enterprises are all on the agenda for the new-look chamber.

With Okehampton OK currently having a funding crisis, there was a void in the promotion of Okehampton and encouraging new business to the town.

'Foot and mouth really had a big effect on businesses here. In turn this has had a knock-on effect on the chamber as a whole but now we have to look to the future,' added Mr Bailey.

'It's not just about what the chamber can do for individuals but what they can do for the chamber — we all work in this society and people need to help each other.'

Membership to the Chamber costs from £35 a year to £75 depending on number of employees.

If you are interested in joining contact Ian Bailey on 01837 52937 or turn up to one of the meetings in the Plume of Feathers — the next is on February 21 where Okehampton Police Inspector Keith Perkin will talk about crime reduction initiatives.