Town Councillor Bill Aron steps down

One of Horncastle Town Council’s longest serving members has stepped down after more than 25 years of service.
Bill Aron.Bill Aron.
Bill Aron.

Councillor Bill Aron resigned from the council on Monday due to health reasons with immediate effect, with more than 50 years of service to Horncastle behind him.

Mr Aron has run family business Houldens for more than 50 years, as well as chairing the Horncastle Crime Prevention Panel.

Under Mr Aron’s guidance, Horncastle became the first market town in Lincolnshire to have town centre CCTV, and helped revived the then-defunct Chamber of Commerce.

He was appointed Horncastle Town Council in 1996 and appointed Mayor three times.

He was one of the first Flood Wardens for the town and was also Horncastle’s East Lindsey District Councillor for five years.

In 2001, he was elected Lincolnshire County Councillor for Horncastle and Tetford, a position he held for 16 years, and was also chairman from 2014 to 2015.

More of Mr Aron’s accomplishments included leading the team who saved the Horncastle War Memorial Centre from demolition, as well as leading the steer group to raise £250,00 to save the Stanhope Hall.

A spokesman for the Town Council said: “We are sad to hear of the resignation of Councillor Bill Aron who was one of our longest serving councillors, having been a member of Horncastle Town Council since December 1996.

"We are aware that Bill has had health issues for some time which has prevented him from attending meetings in recent months, so we fully understand his decision to step down and free up his seat for someone who can play a more active role at the current time.

"We would like to thank Bill for his dedication to help improve Horncastle for residents and visitors over the past 25 years, and we wish him all the best for the future.”

There are now three vacancies on the town council following the resignations of Richard Barker and Al Lockwood in May.

Anyone wishing to apply to become a town councillor will need to complete nomination papers and stand for election, which are available from the town council office.