The grilling is well underway for five Cumbria county councillors taking part in the online democracy event 'I'm a Councillor, Get me out of Here!' .
Primary and secondary school pupils across Cumbria have been asking the questions that matter most to them before deciding which councillor they should vote for tomorrow. The councillor with the least votes will be booted out on Monday October 15th, and then the other four candidates will be whittled down every day next week to the eventual winner, who will be named 'I'm a Councillor Youth Champion'.
The questions are being posed and answered on the specially created website www.bigvote.org.uk.
Questions posed so far include:
- 'Are there enough foster homes in Cumbria?'
- 'What's the most environmentally friendly form of transport?'
- 'Why don't older people get the life they deserve?'
- 'What's the best school in Cumbria?'
- 'What do you think is the worst crime you could commit and not die or be caught by the police?
To find out how the councillors responded, visit www.bigvote.org.uk, click on 'Guest Access' and then select Cumbria from the drop-down menu at the top.
The website also features profiles of each of the five councillors taking part. Revelations include:
- Cllr Keith Little (Labour, Maryport East) is a big fan of Elvis.
- Cllr Olwyn Luckley (Lib Dem, Castle) grew up wanting to be a librarian.
- Cllr Philip Chappelhow (Conservative, Penrith North) was once caned for not drinking his milk fast enough.
- Cllr John Murphy (Labour, Newbarns) nearly died when snorkelling in the Philippines.
- Cllr Elizabeth Barraclough (Lib Dem, Keswick and Derwent) has climbed Kilimanjaro and ran down the scree.
'I'm a Councillor, Get me out of Here!' helps young people learn more about their local council and councillors and feel involved in their communities. It does this by giving young people the opportunity to turn traditional power structures upside-down. Young people choose the issues they want to discuss with councillors, ask the questions and importantly decide which councillor wins.
The event began on October 8th and will finish on October 19th. It is part of Local Democracy Week which runs from 15th - 19th October and aims to promote involvement in local politics/democracy to young people under 26 years of age. Almost every council in England, Wales and Northern Ireland took part last year, and ran events which encouraged young people to get more involved with their local council and community.
ENDS
Media enquiries to Gareth Cosslett, News Manager on 01228 606332
Notes
1. The following participating schools have all been provided with a comprehensive set of Local Democracy teaching materials:
Primary Schools:
- Ashfield Junior School, Workington
- Askam Village School, Askam-in-Furness
- Greystoke School, Penrith
- Heron Hill School, Kendal
- Holm Cultram Abbey CE School, Wigton
- Houghton CE School, Carlisle
- Lindale CE School, Grange-over-Sands
- Maryport CE Junior School, Maryport
- Our Lady of the Rosary Catholic Primary School, Dalton-in-Furness
- Roose School, Barrow
- St Bega's CE School, Holmbrook
- St Begh's Catholic Junior School, Whitehaven
- St Patrick's C of E School, Kendal
- Stanwix Primary School, Carlisle
- Warcop CE School, Appleby
- Warwick Bridge School, Carlisle
Secondary Schools:
- The Lakes School, Windermere
- Millom School
- Newman Catholic School, Carlisle
- Ullswater Community College, Penrith
- Whitehaven School
2. I'm a Councillor, Get me out of here, is a multi-media event, devised by Gallomanor Communications Ltd, www.gallomanor.com and is part of the Take Part, Take Power Local Democracy Campaign www.localdemocracy.org.uk supported by the Local Government Association.
3. This is the 5th successful year for "I'm a Councillor". In 2006, 4,500 young people and 185 councillors took part, in 33 councils across England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales.
4. The 'I'm a Councillor, Get me out of Here!' website is a secure environment that can only be accessed by young people. Those wishing to see the site on a strictly 'look but don't touch' basis, can click on 'guest access' on the homepage www.bigvote.org.uk and choose Cumbria.
5. A full list of participating councils, and further background info, quotes, coverage from 2006 and electronic versions of logos can be found on www.bigvote.org.uk/press. This includes radio packages covering the event, kindly reproduced with the permission of BBC Radio Kent.
6. Gallomanor Contact: Sophia Collins: sophia@bigvote.org.uk or Tel: 01225 869413
Follow this link to go to the 'I'm a Councillor' website