Forty years after Brian McGregor was elected as an Aysgarth and District Parish councillor for Thoralby his daughter, Sandra Wilman (55), has been elected to join him.

Thoralby was one of the five parish councils which had to have an election this month as there were more candidates than required.

This was the first election at Thoralby in 40 years – and the village did it in style with a 70 per cent turnout. The highest turnout anywhere else in Richmondshire was the parish council election at Bellerby (58%).

At the meeting of Aysgarth and District Parish Council on Thursday (May 16) Richmondshire District councillor Yvonne Peacock congratulated Thoralby for what she described as an “absolutely fantastic” turnout.

Cllr Wilman received the highest number of votes (64) beating her father by seven. The other councillor elected was Linda Cooper who has served on the parish council for several years.

Asked why she decided to stand for election Cllr Wilman said: “I want to give something back.” When she was growing up in the village she remembers so many children from there attending school but now there are far fewer.

She worked with her husband in his family’s joinery business in Bradford for many years and now they have retired to Thoralby. So her two sons went to school in Bradford, and her two grandchildren also attend school in Bradford.