The new Mayor of Dudley has pledged to give a huge boost to three charities as he officially took charge of the famous civic chains last night.

Cllr Dave Tyler was officially sworn in as the first citizen of the borough taking over from outgoing first citizen, Cllr Mohammed Hanif, under whom he has served as deputy Mayor for the last 12 months.

The new Mayor named Dudley Mind, the YMCA and Dudley Alzheimer’s Society as his chosen charities for the year vowing to do all he could to raise money for people in most need. Cllr Tyler said:

“It is a huge honour and a privilege to be Mayor of this borough and something I am proud to take on.

“It is an opportunity to not only highlight the fantastic work that these charities do to support people who need help, but also help raise vital funds to help them carry on for many years.”

Cllr Tyler named his wife Barbara as his Mayoress. She will accompany him on civic visits and fly the flag for the borough. The deputy Mayor of Dudley was named as Cllr Alan Taylor, with Winifred Taylor as deputy Mayoress.

Dudley Mind is a mental health charity that aims to improve and promote recovery and wellbeing for people in the Dudley borough affected by poor mental health. YMCA offers a range of services for people in need from accommodation for the homeless to training and education.

Dudley Alzheimer’s Society offers a range of support for Alzheimer’s suffers and their carers including home based respite, social groups, practical and emotional one to one support for carers and monthly care support meetings.

People can follow the Mayor on his civic engagements or share news about his charity fundraising on twitter via @DudleyMayor