Council votes to bring back mayoral robes

The robes are to be brought back minus any fur trim

Councillors in West Sussex have voted to bring back mayoral robes less than a year after scrapping them.

They were dropped by Worthing Borough Council in July following claims their formality could deter people from engaging with local democracy, with some critics also unhappy the robes were trimmed with fur.

Opposition Conservative councillors said the last 10 months had been a “dark stain” on the town’s history and the lack of robes at Remembrance Day was an “insult” to local veterans.

The council will now look at bringing back a new set of robes that do not have animal fur.

Mayors had been wearing the mayoral badge and chains of office

The Conservative group had said any alteration of the current robes would be “tantamount to historical vandalism” because they were “a historical record, legacy and artefact of the town”.

Calls for the reintroduction of robes were debated at a meeting at Worthing Town Hall on Tuesday evening.

Until July the town's mayors had worn robes to chair full council meetings and carry out public appointments, but following the removal they only wore the mayoral badge and chains of office.

Previously all councillors would wear ceremonial robes at the annual council meeting and the Remembrance Day service.

Worthing’s robes date back to 1890 and were lined with Russian sable fur.