The St Neots Initiative (SNI) held its Annual General Meeting on May 14 in the Citizen Hub in St Neots.

This AGM marked the end of Alex Hughes's tenure as chair of the Initiative, but he is not going away as he was elected as vice-chair at the meeting.

Dan Dodson has now been elected as the new chair, with Debbie Phillips as secretary and Ste Greenall as treasurer.

New officers have joined the SNI management group from various backgrounds and ages, and we now have young people taking an interest in the town of St Neots who want to be effective.

“SNI have advanced significantly, specially with regards to the awareness of the Initiative, it has not come without challenges to me personally and those driving our growth," Alex told the meeting.

He also acknowledged the contribution of various members of SNI including those on the various subgroups.

The AGM started with a video of Malcolm Howarth, who was the first chair of the then Town Centre Initiative set up in 1994.

Malcolm passed away in March 2024, the values he stated about the Town Centre Initiative are still relevant today for SNI.

Dan Dodson said he was proud to be taking up the mantel of the chair role and is "looking forward to building on what Alex and the various members have achieved over the last two years”.

SNI are still welcoming new members and citizens to sign up. You can find out more from the website at: www.stneotsinitiative.org.uk

St Neots Initiative is an independent organisation that works with the local community, businesses, and authorities to make change by promoting and further developing St Neots as a great place to live, work and play.

Previously known as the St Neots Town Centre Initiative, the group was formed in late 1996 and was funded to support the Town Centre Manager. Now, the SNI is run by volunteers and relies on membership fees from local companies to fulfil its strategy based on the four pillars of focus:

• What quality of life do we wish to see over the next 10 years?

• What qualities of place are required for this quality of life?

• What are the qualities of a ‘good economy’ to support our aspirations?

• What is the message we want to send to the rest of the UK?