Local Democracy for education

Did you know we invite local schools and educational organisations to visit the Town Hall?

We run educational events for primary school children to take part in local democracy activities, from visiting the Mayor’s Parlour to taking part in mock councils.  The activities we run are changed yearly to be relevant to up coming events and are aligned with the four British values, which are a requirement of the national curriculum.

The local democracy sessions are led by the councillors for the area of the school taking part, plus members of staff from across the council.  The session is started by the councillor explaining who they are, what the council does and what happens in the council chamber. The activities then take place and include voting for someone to become the session mayor, themed teamwork games and a game where the children decide where to go on a trip around the world, using the chamber voting system.

We also arrange local democracy activities for secondary schools, such as holding debating sessions in the Council Chamber or a question time-style debate in the school.

As Chesterfield is celebrating the 60th anniversary of its twinning link with the town of Darmstadt in Germany, this year’s   activities centre on this international friendship, its history and its future and the lessons we can learn from each other.

In previous years we have looked at the centenary of the end of the First World War and how life has changed in 100 years, the importance of equal voting rights and where the council should be spending its money.

To date (since September 2019), we have hosted 10 primary school local democracy visits to the Town Hall. There have also been two secondary school local democracy visits to the town hall and four events held at schools. More events have been planned for this year.