Chris Manning-Press, a long-standing public servant and former head of Essex County Council, has died at the age of 91.

Prior to representing the Mersea and Stanway Division from 1993-2005 as a Conservative councillor, Mr Manning-Press – affectionately known as “Pod” by his close family, referring to the character in the children’s film The Borrowers – had an accomplished military career, retiring as a Lieutenant Colonel in the summer of 1983.

The Mersea and Stanway Division later became the Mersea and Tiptree Division, which Mr Manning-Press continued to represent from 2005 until 2009.

After completing his education at the King’s School in Canterbury, where he was vice-captain of the school, Mr Manning-Press then took up national service in 1949, which turned out to be the beginning of a long and successful career in the military for the next 34 years.

Mr Manning-Press travelled all over the world with the Royal Artillery, starting out in Trieste, Italy, where he also put his musical skills to good use as organist and choir master for the Anglican church.

Although born in Wimbledon, Mr Manning-Press began his long association with Colchester in 1953 when he was posted here with the East Coast Floaters during the floods that decimated Canvey Island and Harwich.

In October 1955, Janette Tovey and Chris Manning-Press were married in St Leonard’s Church, Lexden, and they went on to have four children as Mr Manning-Press took his family all over the world as he continued his military career.

Mr Manning-Press returned to Colchester when he retired from the military in 1983, moving into a house on West Lodge Road.

He soon started his long-standing involvement as a public servant in Colchester when, on his first day of retirement, he became secretary of the Essex Association of Councillors.

His involvement in local projects seemed endless – Mr Manning-Press helped found the Essex Guild of Craftsmen, Essex History Fair, and put his musical and organisational skills to use as he toured Europe with the Essex Youth Orchestra.

As a Conservative councillor for Mersea and Stanway, became Deputy Lieutenant of Essex in 1996, Vice-Chairman of Essex County Council from 2002 to 2004 and then Chairman of the Council from 2004 to 2006.

Mr Manning-Press’s daughter, Sarah Manning-Press, spoke of her father as a caring family man and a great party giver who loved to organise activities for other people to enjoy.

She said: “We were quite a close unit, having spent so many years abroad.

“We had family camping holidays and he was always organising and planning the next holiday before we had been on the family holiday that year.”

Mrs Manning-Press recalled a particular vacation where the weather was so bad that her father had to dust off his army training to save the family holiday.

“When we were in Spain one year, our holiday started with us all digging trenches around our tent – everyone had to take part before we could sit down.

“There was the most enormous storm coming, but we were all safe in our large tent, with the trenches protecting us from the floodwater.”

Chris Manning-Press died of an infection on September 13 at Colchester General Hospital after being admitted for acute anaemia.

He is survived by his four children: – Sarah, Prew, Anthea, and Jim Manning-Press.