TRIBUTES have been paid to a “kind and generous” former Labour councillor who died earlier this month.
Andy Turner, who lived in St Helen Auckland, served West Auckland and then Evenwood as a county councillor for almost a decade until last year. He died on Monday, October 8, aged 64.
Mr Turner had been a professional footballer, playing in goal for a number of Scottish teams. He also served as a military police officer and later taught catering to students at New College Durham.
His reputation as a councillor first began to grow in 1999 when he joined Wear Valley District Council. He served as district councillor up until 2003. He was elected as a county councillor in 2008 and served until 2017, initially representing West Auckland and then Evenwood from 2013.
Chairman of Durham County Council Cllr John Lethbridge said: “I knew Andy for many years and I always found him to be a gentle, kind and thoughtful man who cared a great deal about the community he served. He and I often talked about issues, both local and regional, and we would frequently share the same point of view.
“I have fond memories of these chats, many of which took place when we travelled to County Hall together for meetings.
“Andy will be greatly missed.”
At Durham County Council he was chairman of the pension fund committee from 2010 to 2017. He also served on the human resources committee, corporate issues overview and scrutiny committee, corporate parenting panel and the economy and enterprise overview and scrutiny committee.
As a county councillor, Mr Turner served the Evenwood ward alongside Cllr Heather Smith. Mr Turner lost his seat in the May 2017 election to Cllr Stephen Hugill.
Cllr Smith said: “Andy was a good friend and an extremely generous person who cared a lot about people.”
His neighbourhood budget was used to offer financial support to projects across his ward. More recently Mr Turner helped to fund wooden outdoor benches at Butterknowle Primary School and contributed towards the refurbishment of Butterknowle Village Hall. He also helped to fund the creation of a community banner in Cockfield which was designed by children at Cockfield Primary School in 2016.
Cllr Smith said: “The one project that Andy was most pleased with was the new village banner in Cockfield which the children at the school designed and they took it to the gala day.
“I think that was Andy’s favourite project. He loved anything to do with young people and he was always pleased to contribute.”
Mr Turner helped to fund CCTV cameras and improve access to the Pauline Charlton Sports Pavilion in Cockfield, part-funded table tennis tables for the Dementia Cafe in Evenwood and was involved with the setting up of a cyber cafe at the Randolph Community Centre.
Mr Turner also served as a parish councillor for West Auckland Parish Council since it formed in 2004. He was a school governor at St Helen Auckland Community Primary School for several years.
West Auckland Parish Council paid its respects at the October meeting with a minute’s silence.
Parish chairman Cllr Colin Mairs said: “Andy will be sadly missed as a good worker for the parish council. He was also a good friend to us all.”
Former parish chairwoman Hazel Charlton, added: “Whilst I was on the parish council, Andy did everything he could to help. He was always very helpful. He served the parish well while he was able to.”
The funeral will take place on Tuesday, October 23, at 12.30pm at Wear Valley Crematorium, Coundon.
