On Friday 27 May, Lode Heath’s school council carried out their half termly meeting at Solihull’s Council Chamber, hosted by Councillor Ken Meeson, Mayor of Solihull.
After a warm welcome from the Mayor, the pupils engaged in discussion, much like that of a standard Council meeting.
There were two main items on the agenda for the meeting: the launch of the school-wide initiative called ‘See, Say, Report’ to encourage all pupils to have the confidence to report any issues of bullying, racism, homophobia, and any other forms of verbal abuse to staff. The second item was their half term charity initiative in which the young people decided on a charity and how to promote and raise money for it over the half term.
The Mayor said:
“It was a joy to host the members of Lode Heath’s student council here at Solihull’s Council Chamber and witness bright young voices getting involved in making decisions for their school and fellow pupils.
“They spoke on important issues including the launch of the school’s initiative to encourage pupils to challenge and report verbal abuse such as bullying and racism whenever it arises. This is something I believe is important for young people to be involved in – they are the ones who can create change in the future by challenging harmful behaviours.
“I hope the children thoroughly enjoyed their time here – maybe we are even seeing some future councillors in the making.
“This is an opportunity that I believe would benefit other schools and their student councils as it really gives the students a taste of what it is like to take part in a real Council discussion and a feel for democracy.”
To invite the Mayor to an event please apply online here: https://www.solihull.gov.uk/councillors-and-democracy/invitationsforthemayor