Local councillors play a vital role in our democracy. Last week’s local elections saw a number of new councillors elected to serve different parts of Worcester and I am writing as I always do to congratulate all of those who were elected, whichever party they represent, and to offer to work with them in furthering the interests of the people across the city who we were elected to serve.

Of course, having campaigned hard with many of the Conservative councillors I was particularly pleased to see Nida Hassan elected for Warndon Parish North and Allah Ditta, a former mayor of Worcester and current deputy mayor re-elected for Cathedral whilst Steve Mackay, another ex-mayor returned to the council in St Peter’s. It is easy to focus on the big names and the new ones, it’s always worth remembering those who stood down and thank them for their service.

Roger Knight, mayor of Worcester from 2015 to 2016, stood down as city councillor for St Peter’s after decades of service on the city council, a great champion of the city and a dedicated campaigner against litter and for a greener Worcester, and will be sorely missed at the Guildhall but fortunately for the people of St Peter’s he remains active on the parish council. Gareth Jones has served as a councillor for St Stephen’s for 25 years and was mayor from 2002 to 2003, he will be greatly missed and George Squires has stepped down as Labour councillor for the Arboretum while Alan Feeney moved from Warndon Parish North to pastures new in Meriden.

Each of them has made a contribution to local politics and worked hard to serve the communities they represented and we should thank them for their service.

The outcome of the elections means that no party has an overall majority but the Conservatives remain the largest group, the same situation we faced after the local elections last year and that the three parties represented on the council must now work together to get things done for the city. In this respect, perhaps as if so often does, Worcester is acting as a mirror to the politics of the country as a whole. From the public on the doorsteps, I get the same message locally as I do nationally, people want to see politicians putting aside their political differences to focus on delivery – something that perhaps comes more naturally to councillors than to MPs.

I heard loud and clear the frustration that people feel at the inability of Westminster thus far to deliver on the outcome of the referendum and it is a view that I am feeding back to colleagues in Government and beyond.

Democracy doesn’t always produce tidy results but it is down to those of us who seek election to make things work in line with the way people voted. I will work with councillors and MPs to do just that.