The outgoing mayor of Britain’s most chaotic council used his final address to deliver a scathing verdict on a year of feuding, scandal and social media warfare.

Andy Westby told a packed public gallery at Attleborough Town Council that his year in charge of the authority had been defined by “pure venom and vitriol”, and warned his successor that the position was a “thankless and un-enviable task”.

His dramatic speech reflected on a tenure that has played host to a range of extraordinary bitter feuds which have dominated talk in the town all year.

Mr Westby has served as the town’s mayor since 2025 (Image: Facebook)

“I wish I could say that the past year has been a pleasurable and fulfilling experience but unfortunately I cannot,” he said.

Mr Westby said he had been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease before he was appointed to the role in May 2025, before being diagnosed with cancer in September.

However he said the mental burden of managing the council had weighed on him more than his health.

“The physical toll was grim but the psychological strain was much worse and continues unfortunately,” he said.

“Some people said I should have resigned as chair and maybe in hindsight that would have been the right thing to do.

“However I took the role I was elected to do very seriously due to the state of the council at the time, and I was determined to do this to the best of my ability, even if it meant attending meetings feeling desperately unwell.”

Mr Westby delivered his final address as mayor to a packed out public gallery (Image: Henry Durand)

When Mr Westby assumed the role, members of the authority were already locked in a bitter business dispute that had begun to spill into the council chamber.

One member, Daniel Burcham, had run the Bear pub in the town for two months when his lease was withdrawn by the Taylor family – three generations of whom, John, his daughter Samantha and her daughter Taila – also sit on the council

The Taylors said the lease collapsed due to a failure to comply with its terms, however Mr Burcham, who went on to take over another Attleborough pub, the Griffin, disputed that account.

Daniel Burcham (Image: Supplied)

Mr Westby said: “The council was in turmoil when I was reluctantly persuaded to take on the role of chair as someone who would be acceptable to both warring factions within the chamber.

“It was not a role that came to me naturally, and I didn’t feel at all comfortable, but I was determined to step up, even though my health had other ideas.”

The business dispute between Mr Burcham and the Taylors was also fuelled by a dimension of party politics.

Taila Taylor (left) Stephen Fraser (middle) and Samantha Taylor (right) all sit on Breckland Council and ATC (Image: Facebook)

Mr Burcham and a group of newer councillors eventually formed a loose Reform-based coalition which became known as the Newbies.

While the Taylors – of whom Samantha and Taila both sit on Breckland Council as Conservatives – broadly represented the Tories.

This business dispute and political rivalry led to frequent clashes in council meetings between the two groups – of which Mr Westby had the role of mediator.

“What made things infinitely worse however was the pure venom and vitriol spat out by the two factions towards each other at every opportunity,” he said.

“What started as a private business dispute between councillors quickly degenerated to all-out war which embroiled everyone else with it and quickly trashed the reputation of the council and the town itself which I hope they’re very pleased with themselves for.”

Not all the extraordinary events to rock the council over the past 12 months have occurred in the council chamber.

In July, Stephen Fraser appeared at Norwich Magistrates’ Court to plead guilty to criminal damage following a drunken late night incident where he smashed a shop window in the town by throwing stones at it.

Taila Taylor was there at the time but said she had not witnessed any wrongdoing.

Meanwhile, another councillor, Dominic de Souza, is awaiting trial on charges of beating and stalking his wife, which he denies.

And ahead of one council meeting, members of the public gathered on the green outside the town hall to protest against the authority.

Then, earlier this year, Samantha Taylor was accused of calling Mr Burcham a “vexatious little rat” during a meeting.

A protest outside the council HQ in December (Image: Henry Durand)

Beyond the chamber, much of the conflict also migrated to social media.

A prominent local Facebook group – originally called Tattleborough Nights before being renamed Attleborough Nights – became a forum for abuse and ill-temper from accounts often posting under pseudonyms.

Mr Westby said this was a particular frustration, and accused councillors of posting anonymously themselves.

He said: “What I‘ve found particularly disturbing is the use, or rather misuse, of social media, especially the use of assumed names which I strongly suspect some members of this council are doing which is totally unprofessional.

“I’m sorry but if you have something to say, have the balls to stand up and say it in your own name, instead of claiming to be afraid of the reprisal.”

His departure comes as the council remains embroiled in one of its biggest scandals yet.

Taila Taylor been facing questions over whether she has donated £10,000 she received from the council to charity.

The councillor was awarded the money from Attleborough Town Council in 2021 as part of a £20,000 pay-out to settle a dispute.

The agreement included a clause that half the money should go to charity.

She has declined to say what has happened to the money, although she has said she continues to donate to good causes.

She has claimed the council did not adhere to the terms of the 2021 settlement, relieving her of the charitable obligation.

The row became a prominent issue in the run-up to this month’s county council elections, in which Mr Burcham stood against Ms Taylor in Attleborough and won.

The council has also now agreed to instruct lawyers to assess its position in relation to the settlement and how it was enforced.

Vera Dale was elected as Mr Westby successor (Image: Henry Durand)

Vera Dale, a long-serving councillor who is aligned to neither of the warring factions, was eventually elected as Mr Westby’s successor at the meeting on Monday.

Prior to her appointment, he said: “I’ve tried to be as inclusive as possible and made numerous attempts to unite the council, albeit to no avail, as they’ve never seemingly had the will to do so.”

“Whoever is voted in for the next term, it is a thankless and un-enviable task and I wish them well.

“Unfortunately due to the yawning divide remaining in the council I can only think of one or two people who can have any hope of achieving this while the current state of animosity prevails.

“My only hope for the next year is that as much energy is expended on positivity as has been wasted in the past year by fighting on both sides.”