Tavistock’s retiring mayor has spoken of his “genuine privilege and honour to serve such a remarkable community” as he steps down after a whirlwind year.

Steve Hipsey and his consort, wife Cathy Hipsey have enjoyed a year of civic events and community engagements which has given them an appreciation of just how much goes on in the town.

Steve’s year of office has also given him an involvement in the town council and its “significant responsibilities connected with governance, finance, property management and the stewardship of one of the most historically significant towns in Devon”.

“Despite the workload, the most rewarding aspect of being mayor has undoubtedly been meeting people,” he said. “Tavistock possesses an extraordinarily strong sense of community and a remarkable network of volunteers, charities, organisations and businesses whose efforts strengthen life within the town every day.

“That spirit reveals itself constantly through the many wonderful public events held here and through countless quieter acts of kindness and public service which characterise our community. The recent ‘Tavi Thanks’ volunteering celebration demonstrated just how extraordinary that spirit really is.”

He said that organising the event revealed that around 3,000 people volunteer in Tavistock. “Remarkably, that equates to approximately one in four residents.”

His duties have included standing up for businesses in town at a difficult time for traders, as he and Cathy had the pleasure of opening new businesses along with “the impressive extension to the Bedford Hotel bar”.

He praised the way that Dickensian Evening “once again transformed the town into something truly magical” and paid tribute to its main organisers Tavistock BID, whose successful campaign against proposed parking charges has now received national recognition.

He chose Tavistock Library as his mayoral charity raising £1,718 towards improvements to the children’s section of the library, with a grand draw and a donation of books from Queen Camilla herself.

He added: “The year also provided many memorable occasions, from the Civic Ball and Remembrance events through to concerts, charity evenings and community celebrations. One particularly uplifting example was the hugely successful charity concert involving students from Tavistock College and Mount Kelly in support of Parkinson’s UK. I even found myself bestowing the entirely unofficial title of ‘Honoured Catizen of Tavistock’ upon Polo the cat following overwhelming public demand!”

Steve, whose Royal Navy career has taken him all over the world before leading him to Tavistock, said “serving as mayor has reinforced my belief that Tavistock is an exceptional place”.

“As my term as mayor is now at an end, I would particularly like to thank my wife and consort, Cathy, who somehow ensured that I always arrived at the right place, at the right time and in approximately the right attire. I would also like to thank all our council staff, particularly our town clerk for his wisdom and guidance and our general manager for helping lead such a small but remarkably effective organisation.

“Finally, I would like to thank everyone who has supported Cathy and me during this extraordinary year and wish my successor, Cllr Anne Johnson, every success and good fortune during her forthcoming year as Mayor of Tavistock. It has been a genuine privilege and honour to serve such a remarkable community.”