X marks the spot for young Blackburn voters (From Lancashire Telegraph)

X marks the spot for young Blackburn voters

11:00pm Friday 17th July 2009 in

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SCHOOL children at an East Lancashire primary school have revoluntionised meal times, mixed with pupils from other cultures and opted to hold an official voting day.

The youngsters at Meadowhead Junior School, Anglesey Road, Blackburn, have made changes within their school, some of which have been recorded into a report for other Blackburn with Darwen schools through the school council.

Teachers took a step back and the 22 children on the council listened to the complaints from their class mates and decided to make changes and a difference.

They improved lunchtimes by reorganising where children sit, as previously children with packed lunches sat separately and they redesigned the school menu with popular healthy foods after a number of trail runs. Their changes have been included in a Blackburn with Darwen healthy schools report.

The children, conscious there was limited access to different cultures within the school, also teamed up with St Silas CofE Primary School, which has a majority Asian population, and Meadowhead Infant School to learn about each other.

And to vote for the new incoming council they contacted Blackburn with Darwen Council and asked for official voting booths, voting papers, procedures and appointed a presiding officer.

Alice Haley, nine, said: “I am proud of myself and the work we have done.”

Taylor Carrie, 11, said: “We have mixed with different children from different schools.”

And Carl Brazier, 10, said: “We are proud of the work we have done and we hope the next school council will do even better than us.”

Year three teacher Joanne Naylor said: “The children have shown a lot of maturity and have taken the initiative to organise and sort out the things they wanted to change in the school themselves.

“It has been a big team effort for everyone. They have been a credit to themselves and the school.

“When they first visited St Silas all the children would stick to their own groups but in the last visit they ran off and mingled together.”