Councillors staged a presentation to say goodbye to a colleague after nearly 50 years of service to his community.

At the September meeting of St Pinnock Parish Council, councillors presented Geoffrey Pearce with a wooden bowl to mark his retirement from the council on which he has served as councillor, chairman and vice-chairman.

The bowl was chosen because of its local connections – it is made from a single piece of ash harvested in the parish and was turned by John Allen, of St Neot.

Mr Pearce owned the timber yard in St Pinnock where his home now stands and he was able to tell councillors which local areas were renowned for particular wood species and what they were used for.

Councillors said they arranged the gift as their tribute to Mr Pearce for all his hard work in support of the parish and his help in guiding councillors in their work.

Mr Pearce’s father was a parish councillor before him and Mr Pearce remembers that when he first joined the council, Connon Bridge landfill site was just a small dump for Liskeard Urban District Council.

After 46 years of service to the parish, Mr Pearce thought it was time to stand down from his council duties, although he is still keeping up to date with parish matters and is also an active member of Connon Chapel.