Mark Spencer’s MP column: It is great to see students engaged with running their school

I always enjoy visiting our local schools and my praise goes out to headteacher Ed Seeley and all the staff who have made this school such a pleasant place to be in.

The school have a student school council where pupils from different classes are elected to sit on a committee and help to decide the way certain aspects of the school are run.

So I was slightly daunted by the suggestion of having the children put questions to me! But we all sat round the table and discussed topics to do with the school and what I do in my job as the MP, I think I emerged unscathed!

It is really fantastic to see the students so engaged with the running of their school and ready to put themselves out to help fellow students, at such a young age as well. We had a great conversation about what was important to them and what they wanted to do for a living when they leave school, we had some superb answers but also some very mature and logical ones. I think it is so important to engage the next generation in politics which is why I do these visits, I see it as vital as an MP I give young people the opportunity to engage and participate in politics.

I then went and paid a visit to The Joseph Whittaker School in Rainworth to see the progress being made by the ‘Young Engineers’ there.

This is a group of students who are working with their teacher Mr Worsley to build a rocket powered car and have been testing models at Rolls-Royce in Hucknall. They have their sights set on the current world record and hope to beat it this summer, good luck to them.

It was astonishing to see the intelligence and ingenuity of these students and how readily they have taken up the challenge, they have even prepared Health and Safety documents and reports to a professional standard.

I really was blown away, and I don’t mean a rocket malfunctioned! I mean I was amazed at what a group of students have achieved.

It gives me great pleasure to see what I believe is some of the best schools in our area with some of the best teachers, this is all good news for the future of our Country.

As always if you would like to chat to me or have any issues or queries please drop me an email at [email protected] or call my office on 0115 968 1186.