Village pupils hold their own elections as MP visits school

Pupils at Great Dalby Primary School held hustings and then cast their votes to select 10 new school councillors.

Mrs Kearns loaned the school original voting boxes from the 1999 elections so students could use them to cast their votes.

The youngsters learned more about her role as their MP and had the opportunity to take part in a question and answer session.

Issues covered included fly-tipping, plans to close railway ticket offices, rural crime and solar plants.

Headteacher, Nick Sale, thanked Mrs Kearns for her visit and said: “I see a big part of the school’s role as being about creating well-rounded citizens of the future who feel they can make a difference and play an active part in their community.

"We wanted to teach about democracy and ran our own election campaign complete with ballot papers, speeches and real voting boxes to make it feel authentic.

"We were incredibly impressed by the questions the children asked and how engaged they were in local issues, affecting their lives, such as education, the environment, farming and tackling crime.

"Hopefully we have inspired many future leaders.”

Following her visit to the school, Mrs Kearns, commented: "We are very fortunate to have so many amazing schools locally, and it’s always a joy to be invited to discuss my role as an MP with students.

“I also enjoyed being put to the test with some challenging questions - we’ve definitely got a very talented group of future leaders in the making.”