MALVERN Hills now boasts one of the youngest councillors in England, after 18-year-old Joe Smith was one of three Tory candidates who took the previously all-Lib Dem Chase ward last Thursday.

Coun Smith and his colleagues won their seats after campaigning hard, going out knocking on doors and talking to voters. In his case, he combined canvassing with studying hard for A-levels in economics and politics.

"I've always been interested in politics, and as I read more about it, I realised the Conservatives fitted closest with what I believe," he said. "I've been a member for nearly two years now and I've been involved with setting up a branch of Conservative Forum in West Worcestershire.

"This campaign has been a lot of hard graft," he said. "We started back in January and since there's no substitute for going around knocking on doors and meeting people, that's what we've been doing."

But all the same, Coun Smith and his fellow candidates were unprepared for the size of their victory when it was announced at the count in the early hours of Friday.

This was followed by a flurry of demands for interviews from local and regional TV and radio stations, all wanting to find out more about him.

Now he's looking forward to getting involved with council work. Unlike many people his age, he's decided not to go to university, and after taking his A'Levels this summer, he will join a local firm and train as a management accountant.

Asked about his future political ambition, he says: "I'll just have to see how this goes first. For me it's my strong concern with local issues that motivated me to stand."