Helston's re-elected mayor has looked back on a year of successful new beginnings at the same time as warning against complacency.

Jonathan Radford-Gaby has taken on a second term of office, with Mike Thomas returning as his deputy.

He described it as “a great honour,” adding: “In accepting the responsibilities that this entails, I dedicate myself anew to the service of this wonderful town and it's even more wonderful people.”

Mr Radford-Gaby said that among the highlights of the last year had been the former community centre building at 3 Penrose Road being sold to the Cornubian Arts and Science Trust (CAST), to turn into an arts centre.

Another was the new beginning for the “wonderful” Helston Folk Museum, which in the last 12 months had seen the formation of the voluntary South Kerrier Heritage Trust to bid for and take over its management.

As a “wonderful asset of the town” Mr Radford-Gaby said the museum's future now looked “far more promising.”

The museum is one two organisations in the town that he will be fundraising for over the coming year, along with the Epworth Hall restoration project.

Last month he awarded £1,000 to both Helston Age Concern and the Mustard Seed, as well as smaller grants to other individuals and organisations over the year, as a result of fundraising through his first term of office.

Joking that a “convenient” new beginning had come when the town council agreed to take over the management of the town's public toilets, to prevent them from threat of closure, Mr Radford-Gaby continued: “I am personally a great believer in local services being run by local people, and this for me is very good news indeed. The future of our public conveniences is now secured - you may have noticed that they have recently even received a lick of paint and a spruce up.”

One of the most noteworthy beginnings was the formation of the Helston Business Improvement Partnership, the brainchild of town centre manager Jonathan Birkett, which had seen traders come together to “take control of the regeneration and the commercial destiny of the town.”

Successes already include the “super” new town guide, re-launch of the charter market, hanging baskets, town tidy and the Healthy Helston group, which had bought two defibrillators and carried out training on how to use them.

There was also praise for Rotary members and volunteers who restored the town's signature whitewashed walls after getting “fed up with the interminable wait”, said the mayor.

Mr Radford-Gaby told his assembled guests: “So this last civic year has truly been a new beginning for Helston and its people. There is a common theme running through almost everything I have spoken about this evening, and that is you - the people of this wonderful town of ours.

“Without its people, none of the great things I have just been celebrating could or would have happened for Helston. Never have I seen groups of people working together in Helston quite such volume, bound together with a love of their town and an overriding wish to see things improve.”

However, he warned that while much work had been done there was “no room for complacency” and there was still “much to do”.

The new beginnings continue this year with the arrival of four new members, Gillian Geer, Lloyd Harris, Martine Knight and Nicola Roberts, who were formally welcomed to the council.

At the same time the mayor paid tribute to the services of retiring councillors Sue and David Swift, Niall Devenish and Keith Reynolds who had “worked very hard over many years in the service of Helston.”

Mr Radford-Gaby also thanked the staff of the town council, describing them as a “highly professional and efficient team”, as well as his chaplain Rev Dorothy Noakes for “calming influence”, ceremonial team of beadle, macebearers and flag flyer, and his wife Wendy who has acted as mayoress for the last 12 months.