Whitchurch Town Council has co-opted a new councillor following a full council meeting on Monday night.
Councillors voted at a full council meeting to co-opt Dr Jessica Mercer into their ranks, which will bring the council to 12 members.
Cllr Mercer said that she would contribute her skills working with charities and government to the council, helping to use her expertise on pressing matters such as climate change.
Councillors met at a full council meeting of Whitchurch Town Council on Monday, February 1, to discuss a number of matters, including the co-option of a new councillor.
Only one application form was presented in the meeting papers, that of Dr Jessica Mercer. Cllr Mercer gained her PhD in geography from Macquarie University, in New South Wales, Australia, in 2008, having previously been a disaster management co-ordinator for the development assistance agency ADRA Mongolia.