MAWNAN parish council are looking for some new young blood to take up empty seats in the upcoming elections in May.

The district and parish council elections are set to go ahead on May 3 and Mawnan parish council have at least on person standing down from their position as parish councillor.

Councillor Marjorie Briars, who has been a councillor for over 30 years, has decided to retire after serving Mawnan for three decades.

The council has said that there may be other councillors standing down at the elections but nothing has been confirmed yet.

Mawnan parish council is one of only eight councils in Cornwall to be awarded Quality Council status, which is a seal of approval on the way they work.

John Harrop, clerk to the council, said: "Parish councillors are generally older, as they have more spare time to devote to council duties, but as with anything, it is about achieving a good balance and it would be nice to have some younger people on the council.

"As a council, we need to be able to give a good representation of the village and to have people on the council with a wide range of ages will help that. Some issues are of more interest to younger people too and its important that their views are put over too."

There are several requirements that candidate should have, they have to live or work in Mawnan or within three miles of Mawnan and must be aged 21 or over.

Candidates can also look at a booklet called the Good Councillors Guide, which highlights all of the requirements of a councillor and states what is expected of them and what they can and can not do.

Mr Harrop added: "Another important things is that candidates should be keen to make sure that things progress, within the parish, in line with the needs of people.

"The councillors on Mawnan parish council are really good councillors and they are committed to being active and doing things to make the local community better."

If anyone is interested in becoming a parish councillor for Mawnan, Mr Harrop has said that his office door is always open for people to pop in an look at the Good Councillors Guide or have a chat with some of the existing councillors.

John Harrop can be contacted by telephone on 01326 251051 or email at clerk@mawnan.org.uk or by visiting The Parish Office, Goldmartin Square, Mawnan Smith.