FARNHAM Residents swept to victory in all three of Farnham’s county council seats last Friday – finishing off the hat-trick they came within 63 votes of completing in 2017.

In another bruising election for the Conservatives locally, the party was left with just two of the nine available Surrey seats across Waverley borough as the results were declared at The Edge Leisure Centre in Haslemere.

David Harmer held on to his seat in Waverley Western Villages, and Kevin Deanus took Waverley Eastern Villages for the Tories.

But elsewhere, Farnham Residents’ Andy MacLeod added to his already sizeable majority in Farnham Central, first-time candidate Catherine Powell retained the Farnham North seat won by Stephen Spence for the Residents in 2017, and Michaela Martin added Farnham South.

Ensuring the Farnham Infrastructure Programme (FIP) “works for everyone”, making a success of Brightwells, and boosting public services and facilities for young people, are the key priorities for the town’s new trio of Farnham Residents’ county councillors over the next four-year term.

Speaking to the Herald immediately after Farnham Residents scored victories in all three of Farnham’s county divisions last Friday, the latest addition to the Residents’ ranks Catherine Powell said: “I’m very grateful the people of north Farnham have put their faith in me.

“I will continue to work for them in the way I have in the past, and I really do hope that by working together we can build a stronger, happier, more resilient society, and I hope I can make a difference.”

Mrs Powell added the trio will be a “force to be reckoned with”, seeking to “make sure the path forward for Farnham is as prosperous and fair as it can be.”

She said the lack of youth services and facilities in north Farnham was “a really big problem” she hopes to resolve.

But top of her to-do list is “finding a way to make the infrastructure programme work for everyone”.

“It would be lovely to see the centre of town pedestrianised, but not at the cost of all the other areas,” she added.

Andy MacLeod, who increased his share of the vote in Farnham Central from 43 per cent in 2017 to a huge 67 per cent, said: “I’m just delighted, and I’m very pleased the electorate has continued to show confidence in the Farnham Residents, and we’ve now got three councillors in Farnham so that’s very reassuring and very pleasing.”

Mr MacLeod, who also chairs the FIP’s Local Liaison Forum and is portfolio holder for planning at Waverley Borough Council, added his number- one priority is also “to make a success of the Farnham Infrastructure Project”.

But he also strives to protect local services – such as the library and recycling centre – and to “make Brightwells successful”.

“We have to make it successful,” he added.

“We inherited this project, which most of us didn’t actually want, but we’ve got to do our best to make a success of it – and we will do. Somehow or other, we will do that.”