School pupils work towards making our town a better place
Pupils at Highfield Hall Primary School have been exploring how we can all work together to improve Chesterfield and create a more sustainable town as part of a new local democracy learning programme.
Taking place from 17 January, the children drew up ideas about how they think the local area, including the town centre and Queen’s Park, could be improved – and then had the chance to share their thoughts at a special question and answer session with Chesterfield Borough Council councillors.
Aimed at pupils aged between 6 to 11 years, the project is designed to help them think about how working together as a community can contribute to big changes for the future with a focus on sustainability. It also supports the wider curriculum including their English language skills.
Councillor Amanda Serjeant, deputy leader of Chesterfield Borough Council, said: “We are proud to be able to support this pilot project as part of our local democracy outreach work.
“This has been a fantastic opportunity for local school children to learn more about our borough and contribute their ideas as part of the curriculum. They were all really enthusiastic about the project and had some great ideas for ways we could improve our town and make it more sustainable. I look forward to reading their letters in more detail and seeing if we can introduce any of their suggestions.”
Cllr Serjeant attended the school with ward members Cllr Jill Mannion-Brunt and Cllr Tom Murphy, who accompanied the children on a visit to the town centre and answered questions the children had about the council.
The pupils had some great ideas including public water fountains, reducing in traffic in the town centre, rewarding recycling and encouraging people to walk and cycle more. They had a real interest in sustainability and this was a key discussion topic during the question-and-answer session with their local councillors.
Leader of Chesterfield Borough Council, Cllr Tricia Gilby, has created a video thanking the pupils for their efforts. The council will also consider some of the suggestions made by the children and see how they can be realised.
To come up with their ideas, the pupils used the booklet “How to make your town a better place”, developed by the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe. Through this booklet, the Congress wants to help children better understand the concept of sustainability and encourage them to share their ideas with their local authority. The pupils at Highfield Hall Primary School helped pilot and test this booklet.
The teachers will now feedback to the Congress on the content of the pilot programme and make recommendations for any improvements. In March, the final learning tool will be adopted by the Congress and be made available for children to use in towns and cities from all 47 members of the Council of Europe.
