Mayor Robing, 2 June 2025

On Monday, 2 June, at a formal robing ceremony retiring Mayor, Councillor Kym-Marie Cleasby handed over the chain of office to the Town Mayor for 2025-26, Councillor Emily Trow, and Councillor Mark Luson was confirmed as Deputy Mayor at this event.

We were honoured to welcome Ninna Gibson DL back to Marlborough to join Councillors and their guests, former Mayors and representatives from the town's many groups and charities to witness the event and to join the new Mayor at a reception in the Assembly Room after the formalities.

The Mayor's charities for 2025-26 are Marlborough Area Youth Forum and Prospect Hospice.

Retiring Mayor, Councillor Kym-Marie Cleasby thanked everyone for their support, encouragement and kindness during her Mayoral year. She said "For me public service is not just a civic duty, it’s a calling." A highlight of her year was the 80th anniversary of VE Day at Marlborough Common, and she had been proud to support Love Marlborough Kids Meals in 2024-25. She gave her reasons for proposing Cllr Emily Trow as Mayor:

"Emily is not only a capable and experienced councillor, she is a person of great compassion, wisdom and clarity of vision. She listens deeply, speaks thoughtfully and leads with purpose, she brings her strong background in governance and is a calm presence in challenging conversations; Emily believes in collaboration and she understands that good leadership brings people with it rather than pulling ahead alone. She also has a real heart for young people, and for those who often feel unheard"

Town Mayor Cllr Emily Trow thanked Cllr Cleasby for being a true friend and preparing her throughout her mayoral year, noting that she had some very big shoes to fill. It was bittersweet for her to be accepting the role without her dear husband, Chris, by her side. He had been present last year when she became Deputy Mayor but sadly passed away in October. Describing the difficulty in find a hospice bed for Chris in his final days, she named Prospect Hospice as one of her two charities for this year. The other is the Marlborough Area Youth Forum, which does so much to support young people.

A few photos of the event follow. These are low resolutions images. Please ask us before you use any of our images. Copyright rules apply to digital images on the internet. Read more here