The death has been announced of former Worcester city councillor and Mayor of the city Jeff Carpenter. He passed away peacefully on 20 December, with his family at his bedside. He was aged 86.
Originally hailing from South Wales, Jeff lived in Worcester for much of his life and was a Labour member of the City Council for 27 years from 1973 to 2000, representing the former St Martin ward (now Warndon).
During that time he was Chairman of the Development Committee from 1981 to 1984, and Chairman of the Museums and Art Gallery Sub-Committee from 1990 to 1994.
He was elected as Mayor of Worcester in 1984/85.
An inspirational lecturer in history at the former Worcester Technical College for many years, Jeff was also well known as a local historian and author. His books included Victorian Worcester: A Biography, Worcester's Guildhall: An Historical Guide, and Wartime Worcestershire. He was also a former Chairman of the West Midlands Heritage Lottery Committee.
In 2016 Jeff was made an Honorary Alderman in recognition of his outstanding service to the City Council.
Councillor Adrian Gregson, Leader of the Labour group at Worcester City Council, said: "Jeff was an influential and entertaining councillor. He led planning and conservation, and was extremely committed to the museum and heritage services. A lot of what you see in Worcester today is down to his influence, and it was in recognition of this that we made him an Honorary Alderman in 2016.
"He was a key part of a generation of Labour councillors who brought the city on to be a place that was recognised for tourism, shopping and investment."
