 |
| Marchwood pupil Samantha Monaghan presents council leader Cllr Mel Kendal with letter and petition Click on the image above to see a larger picture. |
Democracy was experienced first-hand by students of Marchwood Junior School who have been making sure that the council hears what they have to say.
11 year old Samantha Monaghan, a pupil at the school, met New Forest District Council leader Cllr Mel Kendal at the council offices in Lyndhurst and presented him with a letter and petition of over 280 signatures.
Samantha and her classmates want to see the council doing more to make people clean up their dog’s mess.
She said: “In Marchwood we have many bins but we can’t seem to get the message to people to clean their dog’s mess up.”
Samantha wrote the letter as part of a competition which is run annually by the school and the parish council. The students were asked what they least liked about Marchwood and invited to design either a poster or leaflet or to write a letter to their local council to try and address the issue.
Cllr Mel Kendal said: “It is important to give young people the opportunity to get involved in the democratic process and educate them on how they can get their voice heard.
The council fully supports any project that encourages young people to learn about citizenship and their role in society.”
The council’s dog warden Neil Burton added: “It is pleasing to see young people taking this matter so seriously.
We actively promote responsible dog ownership and if we catch anyone not clearing up after their dog then we can serve them with a fixed penalty notice of a £50 fine.
If they don’t pay then they can be taken to court where they can be fined up to £1000.” |
