Local Councillor Zoe Van Dyke Visits Gordon

Following the tour, Zoe sat down with our fabulous Pupil Parliament, a team of elected MPs from each class who meet regularly to discuss issues around the school and relay their classmates’ concerns, ideas and solutions. Armed with their MP books and a pre-prepared list of fantastic and insightful questions, the children conducted an excellent interview with Zoe, where they asked her about her goals, roles and responsibilities, and her journey to being elected Councillor for the Strood North ward. Eyes lit up across the Pupil MPs as Zoe spoke passionately about her political career, and the importance of doing the right thing and standing up for what you believe in; it was clear to see how inspired the children became, and how powerful and thought-provoking Zoe’s comments were to them.

Our Pupil Parliament is a new and exciting way for our pupils to take on leadership roles, share their ideas with the school community and make a difference to their school experiences. Recently, our Pupil MPs have been thinking a lot about what it means to be someone who has been elected, and the importance of considering and representing other people’s beliefs and ideas. These reflections made for really interesting discussions with Zoe, as pupils asked her insightful questions such as ‘What inspired you to become a councillor?’ and ‘Is there anything you cannot change but wish you could?’

“We were thrilled to welcome Councillor Zoe Van Dyke to The Gordon Children’s Academy. Our Pupil MPs really enjoyed speaking with her, and hearing all about her role as Councillor for our local ward. As a school, we are passionate about offering our students a range of opportunities to broaden their horizons and transform their life chances; thank you to Zoe for visiting us and for inspiring our future generation of politicians and councillors,” said Mrs Jones, our Head Teacher.

A fundamental part of our mission to transform life chances is preparing our children for life after school by teaching them about the world around them, including how decisions are made on a national and global scale; our Pupil Parliament is designed to do just that, and we are proud to offer our pupils the chance to interact with important figures within our community, like Zoe herself.