Long-serving Sudbury community wardens leader Bradley Smith steps down after 17 years

A long-serving contributor to Sudbury life has reflected fondly on his ‘wonderful’ years of working with the community, as he departs for pastures new.

Bradley Smith – widely known as the figurehead of the Sudbury community wardens – confirmed this week that he is stepping down after 17 years in the role.

Mr Smith joined the community wardens back in 2007, before moving up to the position of warden team supervisor in 2016, and then operations manager this year.

During this time, the wardens have significantly expanded their remit, with the team initially focused on cleaning up the local environment.

Since then, they have also taken up key roles in a wide range of community activities, including annual events, as well as various civic duties in Sudbury and the surrounding villages.

Mr Smith, who grew up in the area and was educated at Sudbury Upper School, said stepping down was a hard decision, but he felt it was the right time to move on.

Mr Smith paid tribute to the many community members, businesses and schoolchildren he has met over his years as a warden, plus his colleagues in Sudbury and at neighbouring parish councils.

“My time in the role has been wonderful,” he told SuffolkNews. “I started in December 2007, when the wardens had been going since 2005.

“Back then, it was all about litter picking and improving the environment, but we’ve been allowed free reign by the town council to expand the role.

“My highlight has been working with schools and the community in general. I have been involved in a lot of different things, but I have left on my own terms, and it’s the right time for me to step away.”

The Sudbury Community Wardens currently work on a wide range of community initiatives, in partnership with schools, businesses, charities and the town’s policing team.

While team leader, Mr Smith was one of the recipients of the inaugural Suffolk Hero Awards presented in 2021, in honour of the support he and his team provided to the community during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The wardens notably carried out deliveries of food and prescriptions for vulnerable people during lockdown, and helped local schools to adapt for social distancing, to prepare them for reopening as restrictions eased.

For their work, Mr Smith and his team were further recognised as The Most Splendid Supporter of Schools at the Covid-19 Awards, organised by local businesses in the Sudbury area.

After recovering from Covid himself, he also joined the One Million Step Challenge between July and September 2021, raising more than £1,200 for Diabetes UK – having been diagnosed with the condition two years prior.

In recent times, Mr Smith spearheaded the Sudbury Upcycled Tyre Trail, a popular community-led creative display, which took place in the town centre.

Starting as a one-off way to reuse old, discarded tyres recovered by the wardens, the project became a recurring fixture for seasonal occasions, such as Easter and Christmas.

However, Mr Smith revealed his standout memories were setting up Sudbury’s annual Christmas Lights Switch-on, and his work with young people on competitions and community litter picks.

“My two favourites are, first of all, doing the Christmas lights installations over the last eight years,” he added.

“It was great seeing them come on every year, knowing that it was done by your team, and that you had done the town proud.

“Also, being involved with the schools was really rewarding, because the children are the future, and I really enjoyed going back to my old school as well.”