At last Saturday's annual civic dinner, the guest of honour, Lord Salisbury, spoke about how local government had become much maligned in recent times.

He called on central government and political parties of all persuasions to remember the importance of decision-making by people in their area, which seems a good message at this time of year.I think his comments resonated among the guests, as he spoke less of politics and more about making a contribution to society.That too was the object of the civic dinner - not a political spectacle but an opportunity for councillors, officers, charitable groups and local organisations to come together to celebrate such work.Among the 250 guests were more than 60 local groups from across the borough. Four were chosen by the Mayor for a civic award for the contribution they had made to Hertsmere.It's when you look at the guest list on an evening such as this that you are reminded of just how much time some people give to our area.We owe a great debt of gratitude to all of these groups and associations and the countless other organisations that were not present at the dinner last week, but who nonetheless help to improve and enrich the lives of our communities.Councillor Morris Bright Leader, Hertsmere Borough Council