Councillor Penny Carpenter announced as Mayor Elect for Great Yarmouth

After retiring from the public sector in 2013, Cllr Carpenter brings a wealth of experience to the role, having served on Great Yarmouth Borough Council for many years working tirelessly to improve the town for its residents.

Penny and her family were regular visitors to Great Yarmouth when they played in the Police Ten Pin Bowling competitions and enjoyed what the borough had to offer, especially its miles of golden beaches.

Cllr Carpenter now lives in Belton, where she has a daughter and a grandson, after retiring to Great Yarmouth.

Penny began to get to know the borough after becoming employed as the Car Clear Officer for Norfolk Constabulary and Great Yarmouth Borough Council. After that, she then moved into Norfolk Constabulary as a Crime Reduction Officer and worked from Haven Bridge House, making connections that grew in her role as a borough Councillor.

As Mayor of the borough, Cllr Carpenter will chair full council meetings and help to raise money for her chosen charities, which include Marie Curie in GY & Waveney (community care), 1st Caister-on-Sea Scout Group, Caister Lifeboat and Redwings Horse Sanctuary.

The Mayor Elect said about their chosen charities: "All of my chosen charities are special to me. As a recovering cancer patient, I appreciate the care and support Marie Curie provide for people living with terminal illness, I have always been impressed by the excellent work of Caister Scout group and of course Caister Lifeboat Service is a valued and respected organisation whose members put their own lives at risk to rescue others.

"My last charity, Redwings, look after and support beautiful horses, nursing the magnificent creatures back to health and ensuring there are protected and safe.

"I applaud all the work these charities do and I am delighted to support them in my Mayoral year."

Cllr Carpenter will be officially elected to the ceremonial, non-political role at the next full council meeting on Thursday, May 18, where she will take over from Cllr Graham Plant. Her deputy will also be voted in at the meeting.

As Mayor, she will work to ensure that Great Yarmouth continues to thrive and grow, and that the needs of its residents are always at the forefront of decision making.

Speaking about her new role, Cllr Carpenter said: "When I retired from Norfolk Constabulary, a friend suggested that I might like to go into local politics and after being elected back in May 2015 I have not looked back since. I believe my previous working life was in preparation to work as a Councillor which is varied and every day is a new challenge. I feel very fortunate to represent Caister at County Level and only very recently was re -elected to again represent Caister North.

"I am honoured to have been elected as the new Mayor of Great Yarmouth. I am committed to working with my fellow councillors and the local community to ensure that our town continues to flourish and that we address the challenges we face. Great Yarmouth is a wonderful place to live, work and visit, and I look forward to helping to make it an even better place in the years to come."