A new movement officially launched in Honiton today, spearheaded by key members of the community.

'Honiton Forward' aims to be a force for positive change; bringing people together to help collectively pave the way for the future of the town.

According to a statement: "On July 20, members of the Honiton community launched a new movement to take forward the interests of the people of our town.

"All Honiton residents are eligible to participate in Honiton Forward, which is dedicated to ensuring that Honiton is an inclusive community where everyone will want to live and work because the wellbeing of residents is prioritised, the environment is sustainable, the economy is vibrant, everyone is safe and life is fun.

"Members of the community involved in the creation of Honiton Forward are working to create a strong vision for the future of Honiton and to find ways to empower the whole town in working together to achieve it.

"We believe that the lead role for undertaking this work should be the responsibility of Honiton Town Council but the current Council has failed to step up to that responsibility.

"The Council has been the focus of many problems; including bullying and harassment which since 2015 which has led to the resignation of 21 councillors from the Council and significant absences by members of Staff.

"Due to the unpopularity of Honiton Town Council, insufficient people stood at the last election so ironically some of the people responsible for ruining the council's reputation were then seemingly elected without opposition.

"Meanwhile, the people of Honiton are seeing little or no benefit in return for the money they are paying for the Town Council through their council tax, instead some councillors are focussed on settling old scores and pursuing costly and dubious litigation.

"Over 700 people recently signed a petition calling on councillors to resign their seats so that a proper election could take place. It was proposed that existing councillors could make their case to the community as to why they thought they should be allowed to continue, while people with new ideas could put themselves forward.

"Honiton Forward continues to call on town councillors to do the right thing and submit themselves to a contested election for their seats. However if this request continues to be ignored we are raising a petition to East Devon District Council calling on it to use its powers to Dissolve Honiton Town Council, to Repair the damage caused by recent events and to Restore the council through a contested election.

"Honiton Forward is so much more than just a campaign to revitalise the town council, which is really the means to a greater end.

"We want to either directly facilitate projects or work in support of others to improve all the areas within our remit:

• Wellbeing of the community
• Sustainable environment
• Vibrant economy
• Community safety
• A good fun place to be

"Honiton Forward hopes that the people of Honiton and beyond will join our movement and work with us to make Honiton fantastic.

"We also ask you to sign the petition for a Community Governance Review so that the will of the people is clear. This is not a political campaign and indeed we call on all political parties to work with us to support the desire of residents to create a new vision for Honiton.

"We also hope that Honiton residents and others will help us to identify all the ways to achieve our mission and make Honiton the best place it can possibly be.

"Honiton Forward is the place where everyone who lives in Honiton is welcome and where the positive vision for our future is being created."

Click here to learn more about Honiton Forward.