'ONLY if we are united in heart and head will we succeed' was one of the comments made by Tavistock town mayor Cllr Harry Smith last Wednesday.

Cllr Smith welcomed members of the public and councillors to the parish annual meeting in the town hall with a speech summing up the council's civic year.

He said: 'This 2014 annual meeting takes place at the end of another challenging year for your town council.

'Despite all of the challenges, we did successfully deliver Goose Fair, Tavistock Garden Festival and Christmas lights.'

He explained that the council, and representatives from several partners, have been hard at work with projects and bids, and that the town council had been actively supporting the drive to bring Tavistock key centre status within the West Devon and East Cornwall World Heritage Site.

One issue Cllr Smith has been passionate about is the Guildhall remaining in public ownership.

He said: 'I, with council support, have worked to enable the authority to be in a position to submit a bid for grant funding in an attempt to keep the Guildhall building in public ownership and provide a basis for public services and a World Heritage site Key Centre Status.

'In these difficult times the town council has managed to increase the overall amount paid, by way of grants and donations, to local organisations which support the community in an assortment of ways.'

He said the council understood it must work with the borough and county councils on how to support Tavistock and mitigate the likelihood of increasing cuts to services.

'As an organisation the council must recognise that some of the challenges currently facing us are unprecedented in the history of the authority,' he said.

Cllr Harry Smith thanked all councillors, staff and partners for their support during the last civic year.

He said: 'In this time we have succeeded in doing a lot but clearly there is much still to do. I believe that future success is only possible by working together in a spirit of professionalism, mutual respect and trust because only if we are united in heart and head will we succeed. This town needs that success.'

In the statement on the council's financial affairs, chairman of finance and general purposes committee, Cllr Ann Johnson, told the public: 'Tavistock Town Council continues to be one of the few councils in the country which successfully subsidises services to the local tax payer. It raises more than half of its income from commercial activities and continues to work hard to maximise this income.

'However, we are mindful that the continuing impact of inflation, increasing regulation and reductions in other public services places increasing costs upon us if we are to do the best for our town.

'Looking ahead, the next few years are likely to be amongst the most financially challenging the council has faced both in terms of demands on the capital programme, the vulnerability of income and the increasing importance of working with others to achieve common goals.

'However, we remain committed to doing the best we can for Tavistock, both now and for the long term.'

Also during the meeting, town clerk Carl Hearn reported on the financial statement for the Jessie Ann Alford Charity.

Jessie Anne Alford was the wife of William Charles Alford a local market keeper, councillor and Poor Law Guardian in the 1920s.

When Jessie died in 1947 she left £1,000 in trust to the local council. A scheme was established by which the charity was to benefit spinsters and widows aged 60 and over living in Tavistock.

The value of its assets on December 31, 2013 was £9,555.83, up by £1,015.99 from the previous year.

Last year only two applications were received, and a grant was made to each applicant of £100.