Happy New Year: Dignitaries share their thoughts and hopes for the year ahead

Brentford manager Mark Warburton said: "We are almost at the halfway stage of what has so far been a very productive first season back in the Championship.

"Indeed, our Boxing Day fixture against Ipswich Town marked game 23 of a 46 game schedule which is relentless in nature but to which the players have adapted extremely well.

"Much thought of course turns towards the second half of the fixture programme and I am certainly not one to make any predictions about how our season will finish.

"All I can promise is that the players will be best prepared for every game and with the quality and character they have already shown, I hope very much that the second half of the season can be as rewarding as the first.

"The message to all readers and all Brentford fans is a sincere thank you for the outstanding backing we have received and to wish you a very happy and healthy New Year!"

Mayor of Richmond Councillor Jane Boulton said: "2014 has been a very special year for me.

"In May, I was re-elected to the council as a councillor for west Twickenham.

"I was then honoured to be appointed your borough mayor.

"I have been proud to salute the officers and bandsmen and bandswomen of Kneller Hall (reaffirming their freedom of the borough) and commemorated the beginning of the First World War at Radnor Gardens.

"I have been able to thank personally many of the individuals and organisations that make such a marvellous contribution to our wonderful borough.

"2015 looks to be a momentous year with the general election May 7 just a week before the end of my mayoral year.

"I look forward to meeting more residents, especially younger members of our community and promoting my chosen charities, Homelink and Momentum.

"I sincerely wish all borough residents a very happy Christmas and peaceful New Year."

Christiaan de Villiers, general manager at Richmond Theatre, said: "On behalf of everybody at Richmond Theatre we would like to thank our wonderful patrons for their loyal support throughout 2014.

"It has been a great year for the theatre with us celebrating our 115th birthday, we would like to thank the cast and crew of the fantastic productions that have graced our stage this year.

"We hope everybody has a lovely Christmas and New Year and we look forward to a prosperous 2015 with our wonderfully varied programme of productions for those attending from Richmond and beyond."

Zac Goldsmith, MP for Richmond Park and north Kingston, said: "As we reach the end of 2014, I have had the tremendous honour and privilege of representing in Parliament my home community for another year. It has been a pleasure working so closely with residents and all the many people who deliver vital services in our area.

"From a political point of view, the first part of 2015 will be frantic, but as we approach the election, we must not be distracted from some important challenges, not least the campaign against Heathrow expansion.

"We do not have long to win the arguments, and if a future Government makes the mistake of giving a green light to expansion, we will need to be ready to mount an unprecedented campaign. That is my absolute priority, and with your help, I am absolutely confident we will win.

"I wish you all a very happy new year."

Simon Richards, manager of Richmond Park, said: "It’s been another great year in Richmond Park, the largest of the Royal Parks. With Richmond Park already being a Site of Special Scientific Interest, we are delighted to hear that another Royal Park - Bushy Park - has been designated this status by Natural England.

"Earlier this year we celebrated the completion of the building work in Isabella Plantation, a 40 acre ornamental woodland garden in Richmond Park. The £1.5m lottery funded project has delivered a number of improvements including better access for wheelchair users by resurfacing paths and upgrading bridges, and helping the environment by the desilting and replanting of ponds.

"I would like to say a big thank you to the hundreds of volunteers in Richmond Park who provide an essential service, helping out with everything from wildlife recording and organising walks, to rhododendron clearing. If you would like to find out more about being a Royal Parks volunteer, visitroyalparks.org.uk/be-involved/volunteering-in-the-royal-parks.

"Happy New Year from everyone at Richmond Park."

Leader of the opposition Councillor Stephen Knight said: "Hopefully 2015 will be the year in which we finally start taking the dangers of air pollution seriously. New government estimates for the number of people killed by exposure to nitrogen dioxide are likely to place air pollution at the very top of the public health agenda. Breathing polluted air gives you an increased risk of death from heart attack and stroke and also causes respiratory diseases and permanent damage to lung development in young children.

"Diesel exhaust is a major source of such pollution and we need urgent action to reduce diesel emissions and to promote a switch to cleaner, electric vehicles.

"A recent report by the Commons Environmental Audit Committee argued that there should be a moratorium on new schools near to main roads and that schools already near to main roads should have air filters. We have over 20 such schools in the borough, so we have an urgent need to take action."

David Burland, chief executive of Shooting Star Chase, said: "Shooting Star Chase would like to wish all readers of the Richmond and Twickenham Times a merry Christmas and a healthy and happy new year.

"We’d also like to thank the local community for their continued support in 2014. We care for 650 children with life-limiting conditions and their families across London and Surrey, and the support we provide wouldn’t be possible without the fundraising efforts and kind donations from the individuals and businesses in the local area.

"We know there are many more families desperate for our vital support, so we aim to raise even more funds next year to make every moment count for sick children."

The editor of TeddingtonTown.co.uk said: “Happy new year to all TeddingtonTown. co.uk readers and Twitter followers. We would like to take this opportunity to wish you all a happy 2015.

“There were highs and lows in 2015; we saw the closure of Teddington Studios and heard about the potential Heathrow expansion that could affect our town.

“We helped organise the inaugural Totally Locally Teddington World Cup, which saw local businesses battle it out on the football pitch in front of hundreds of residents. 2015 will see the second of these and many more will follow.

“The website celebrated its fifth anniversary and a million views this year, not bad for a hobby that started by posting lost cat posters.

“A big thank you to our sponsors; Shambles Italian Restaurant, Milestone Residential and Parsonage & Co Solicitors for their support.”

Manon Jones, of Teddington RNLI, said: “In 2014 we saw heavy rainfall and extreme flooding, sunken boats and dangerous debris hurtling down the Thames.

“This, plus a particularly fine spring and summer, made for a busy year at Teddington RNLI Station, responding to around 75 emergencies, making it the third busiest station in the UK.

“As well as saving lives on the river, our aim for 2014 was to spread river safety awareness in conjunction with the RNLI’s Respect the Water campaign.

“Through tremendous efforts from our volunteer crew, we were able to complete over 15 briefing sessions to local scout, brownie and similar youth groups, educating 272 young people on the dangers of the river and how best to respond to an emergency.

“We have seen great successes from our ongoing local campaign, led by volunteer helmsman Andy Butterfield, to train staff from riverside bars and restaurants in the use of throw-bags, a rescue device consisting of a length of rope stuffed loosely in bag – and so far they have saved four lives.

“Improved training and continued support from the full-time helms of our flank station, Chiswick, has enabled our new recruits to reach operational readiness in record time.

“Our focus for the coming year is to increase river safety awareness and continue to drive the Respect the Water campaign. Due to the unique features on this stretch of the Thames, in 2015 crew will attend specialised swift water training. This is supplementary to our weekly training and compulsory first aid and crew courses at the RNLI headquarters in Poole.

“From all at Teddington Lifeboat Station, we wish you a very happy new year. Be safe and remember to respect the water.”