HUNDREDS of mourners paid their final respects to borough councillor Fred Venables at his funeral on Thursday afternoon.

Around 220-250 people packed into Trinity Methodist Church in Whitby Road to remember the life of 'a remarkable man'.

Cllr Venables died on January 31 at the age of 82, following a six-month battle with stomach cancer.

The service was conducted jointly by the Rev Christine Jones of Trinity and the Rev Tom Wright of the Welsh Presbyterian Church in Westminster, where Cllr Venables sometimes worshipped.

The Rev Jones said: 'Cllr Venables touched so many lives of the people he served. His grace travels with us forever.'

Mr Wright paid tribute to his dry wit, calling him a 'Christian socialist, very much old Labour'.

He said Cllr Venables was a 'private, honest and sincere' man who worked selflessly on behalf of his Westminster ward and the borough.

And he added that Cllr Venables loved music and was chairman of the Westminster Choir for many years. The choir sang two hymns in his honour, while the congregation sang Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah, The Lord's My Shepherd, and Make Me a Captive, Lord.

Cllr Reg Chrimes, who took over as borough council leader last year when Cllr Venables stepped down from the role after more than 35 years, paid tribute to his friend of half a century.

He said: 'Fred was a remarkable man. He had no enemies at all, everyone had only good things to say about him.

'Shortly after being elected in April 1948 he put forward that we should have a communal meeting place - that became the present Ellesmere Port Civic Hall.

'Fred saw a lot of changes in Ellesmere Port, first as a councillor and then under his leadership, including the revitalisation of the waterways, expansion of the petrochemical industry, a big home building programme, the Boat Museum, the EPIC, Cheshire Oaks and the Blue Planet.

'But he wasn't so keen on the loss of a park, bandstand, and York Road football pitch in the town centre, or the changing face of Whitby Road.'

The service was followed by a private ceremony at Blacon Crematorium then refreshments at the Civic Hall.

Cllr Venables' family - including his brother Robert, sister-in-law, nieces and nephews - asked that donations in lieu of flowers are made to the Countess of Chester's BPositive appeal to help patients undergoing chemotherapy.