It is not often that the story of a new Mayor of Swindon taking office makes international news, but that is precisely what happened to Cllr Imtiyaz Shaikh.
Among the foreign newspapers to report on the changeover at the Civic Offices was The Times of India, which was already decades old when the borough of which Cllr Shaikh is Mayor was established, and which is the most widely circulated English language newspaper on the planet.
The reason for the international attention?
As Swindon Borough Council said in its own announcement of the new Mayor's taking office: "Swindon is incredibly proud of its strong Goan community and today Councillor Imtiyaz Shaikh became Swindon’s first Indian and Goan Mayor of Swindon at a special ceremony.
"The Mayor carries out a range of civic duties on behalf of the Council and acts as an ambassador for the area, to represent the local community and local democracy."
Cllr Shaikh was quick to set out his approach to the role and to the community he serves, saying: "I am here to lend a hand of friendship, extend my support where possible and listen to all residents views regardless of who they and where they are from.
"I was really proud and happy to be the Deputy Mayor. It gave me an opportunity to learn and shadow the Mayor of Swindon.
"As Mayor my main aim is to connect communities across Swindon to build a stronger foundation for the next generation."
This commitment is reflected in his choice of Mayor's charities. Each incoming Mayor of Swindon is invited to name two charities especially close to their heart at the beginning of their term, and Cllr Shaikh announced that his BEST - Be a Better You and Changing Suits.
BEST - Be a Better You was founded in 2020, and its mission is "...to provide a positive experience for young people with different social, emotional and mental health barriers."
The charity achieves this through sports training and mentoring, supporting the young people to go on to lead successful lives."
Changing Suits, meanwhile, is a community-based organisation which aims to transcend cultural barriers and get the South Asian community to engage with support services. Its activities include family-friendly health and wellbeing event to raise awareness of a variety of crucial issues.
The Mayor said: "Both do amazing work in Swindon with the youth and in South Asian communities."
Aside from these organisations, however, Cllr Shaikh plans plenty of other community work. "I have some fantastic ideas: I will be working with local schools, businesses, charities and residents."
Cllr Shaikh, proud father of two children, represents the Eastcott ward on Swindon Borough Council and has a management role at DHL.
He is married to fellow borough councillor Adorabelle Amaral Shaikh, whose ward is Central.
The couple have lived in Swindon since 2004, and married in the town.
Asked whether he had political ambitions from an early age, the Mayor said: "I’ve always loved meeting new people and that’s something I enjoy doing to this day.
"I don’t think there was a master plan, but I eventually found myself becoming a community contact where people would place their trust in me and I guess that eventually led me to want to play a more formal role in service."
He was first elected to the council in 2018. "It was an incredible feeling of elation and I couldn’t believe that I could start to work with the system to help all our community.
"I was eager to help those who reached out to me and being a councillor was the only formal way I could extend a helping hand. The communities interacted with have been my biggest inspiration!"
His proudest achievements all reflect this winner of the South West Region Community Champion Award for 2019.
He assisted the community during the covid pandemic, for example, using his networking skills to help people make awareness videos, and has raised funds for Swindon homeless charity Threshold and Great Western Hospital charity Brighter Futures.
He has cooked meals for the Harbour Project, the organisation which is a lifeline for refugees and asylum seekers, and during the pandemic ran a food bank from his garage.
Which people in his life, past and present, does the new Mayor credit most with helping him along the way to your achievement in becoming civic leader of the borough?
"My wife, both our families, my close friends and the community have been very supportive and helpful in my journey."
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