Polly Billington MP Labour MP for East Thanet
Polly has visited Royal Harbour Academy in Ramsgate to meet with students there and hear their thoughts on what community means to them. At the event, pupils from secondary schools in Kent presented their views to Polly, including on issues like animal cruelty, support for the LGBTQ+ community, littering, knife crime, bullying, homelessness, cost of living crisis, and the climate crisis.
Year 7 Students from the Royal Harbour Academy, Hartsdown Academy, and King Ethelbert School, took part in six sessions of the Change Makers programme where students were guided through engaging, interactive workshops that asks them to respond to local or global issues.
After the visit she said:
I know the importance of learning to speak up and speak out, and the Change Makers programme does fantastic work supporting students in schools across Thanet to do just that. It’s vital not only for the workplace, but for life: to make the case for yourself, for your loved ones, and for your community. I look forward to seeing many more confident, articulate young people in Thanet as a result of this important programme.
Change Makers is part of Canterbury Christ Church University’s outreach mission to engage young people in Higher Education, raise aspirations, boost confidence, and help to increase GCSE subject attainment of students who attend the sessions. It aims to break down barriers to opportunity at every stage for school children. It is led by Canterbury Christ Church University in collaboration with the University of Greenwich and the Kent and Medway Progression Federation.