The council’s chamber was filled with students aged 16 to 18 last week, to help mark the annual UK Parliament Week (18-24 November).
On Thursday (14 November), around 35 young adults from local schools, visited the main council offices in Letchworth to meet local councillors, hear from local MPs and learn about the importance of local democracy. The day included input from Chris Hinchliff MP for North East Herts and Alistair Strathern MP for Hitchin, as well as the High Sheriff of Hertfordshire Annie Brewster JP.
A council overview and information on what happens at an election count was given, and students were split into smaller groups to enable them to get to know and ask questions directly to a cross-party group of district and county councillors. And to really help the young people get to grips with democracy, a council-style debate was held on whether the railways should be re-nationalised - and following a vote an informal motion was proposed that railways should be renationalised with funding ringfenced to support investment in services.
Cllr Val Bryant, Executive Member for Community & Partnerships, said: "It was great to host so many young people and see them get involved with all the activities we planned. The feedback has been very encouraging and I particularly enjoyed hearing what they had to say about re-nationalising the railways. It’s so important for young people to learn about and become involved in local democracy – so they can appreciate how it affects their everyday lives and how it fits into the national picture.”
Comments from attendees included:
- “I loved the debate, contributing was scary but worth it”
- “Very informational”
- “Learnt lots of new things, I liked the High Sheriff a lot”
- “Using voting buttons was a good experience”
- “Was very fun getting a chance to debate an issue and having an experience of what a council debate is like”
- “Good to ask about how and why councillors came to their posts, and their priorities”
Pupils came from five schools – Fearnhill in Letchworth, Knights Templar in Baldock, Hitchin Boys and Girls and Priory.
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