In a surprising twist, the man dubbed Britain’s loneliest councillor after all his colleagues dramatically quit has now also resigned.
John Crowfoot became the only member left on Geldeston Parish Council (GPC), a picturesque village on the River Waveney in south Norfolk, when all the other councillors quit in an open letter pinned to the village noticeboard.
Since their dramatic resignation in June, Mr Crowfoot - who has strenuously denied accusations of poor behaviour - has been calling for Geldeston residents to step up and join him on the council.
But now, in a surprise move, Mr Crowfoot has also left the council, leaving no locally elected representatives on the council.
Explaining his decision, Mr Crowfoot said: “The trouble is I was being left to deal with everything myself and it was too much for one person, so I have decided to let them form a new council and sort things out.
“I think that’s the end of it for me [on GPC].”
Mr Crowfoot, who was previously described as Britain’s loneliest councillor, said there had been several issues, including that no one had wanted to join him on GPC.
He said the other issue was getting control of bank accounts to ensure the running of the council.
The former councillor said he was also unaware of what had happened to GPC’s website, which is no longer available, before saying he did not wish to discuss the issue any further.
To ensure GPC can continue to run, South Norfolk Council (SNC), which oversees the parish, has had to parachute in its own members.
An election will only be held if 10 locals request one, otherwise, vacancies will be filled by co-option – a process where the SNC members will pick people who put themselves forward to stand on the council.
When GPC reaches sufficient levels to be quorate with locals the SNC’s members will be able to step down from the council.
While it is unknown if anyone has put themselves forward, the councillors who previously resigned in protest at Mr Crowfoot could now come forward for co-option.
The commotion began when the chairman and clerk of the council quit at the end of May, just weeks after the local elections.
Then five other councillors left with a fierce attack on Mr Crowfoot in a letter pinned to the inside of the parish notice board on June 5, in which they accused him of being “abusive” towards the former clerk.
He was unable to remove the letter for almost a month because his former colleagues refused to tell him who had the key.
Mr Crowfoot has always denied the claims and branded the letter “libellous and unlawful”, without any evidence to support the assertion.
The dispute even saw police called in to investigate. Officers visited Mr Crowfoot and offered him “words of advice”.
Because he was not given access to the notice board the letter stayed in place for 22 days.
The Crowfoots
John Crowfoot is a Geldeston native who worked as a translator in Russia for about 15 years.
He also helped set up a literature prize and worked with a human rights organisation which has since been closed by Vladimir Putin's regime.
But he is not the only notable member of his family.
His aunt, Dorothy Crowfoot Hodgkin, who also came from the village, was a Nobel prize winner for chemistry. She was the third woman to win the prize.
Mrs Crowfoot Hodgkin is also well known for teaching a then-future prime minister - Margaret Thatcher – while tutoring in chemistry at Oxford.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here