Great Torrington students pitch ideas for how to make their town better!

On Monday 17 March 2025, Torridge District Council hosted a Democracy event for year 11 students at Great Torrington School, to give them a feel for how democracy works on a day-to-day basis. 

The session invited students to propose ideas for what they would do to make Great Torrington better, followed by a prioritisation task focusing on topics including:  housing, local skills provision, active transport and opportunities for young people.  With an assigned budget of £10million the teams had to consider the different people in their communities and their different needs to provide a balance between the two.

The activity sparked a spirited and engaging series of debates among the students, each contributing their unique perspectives and insights. All the students showed great knowledge of the area and had interesting ideas about how they could improve their town.

Issie, one of the students attending the event commented: "It was nice to have our views listened to, because there's so much that needs to be done in Torrington."

The mind maps and suggestions generated by the students will be shared with the Great Torrington Regeneration Board - so there's every chance that some of these ideas and proposals could become a reality.

Councillor Claire Hodson, Deputy Leader of Torridge District Council said;

"It is extremely important that we engage and listen to the youth of today. The students spoke with passion and clearly had masses of pride for their local area. They debated with skill and pitched some fantastic ideas relating to the different ways they could make their town better.  I would like to thank the staff and pupils of Great Torrington School for taking part this event and we hope that we can hold further sessions in the future."

Councillor Cheryl Cottle-Hunkin, Lead member for Community and Culture said;

"It was great to speak with the students and hear about their ideas for Great Torrington and how it can be improved. The students I spoke with were really keen to improve the appearance of the town centre while keeping the historic feel. They also thought large murals would be a relatively easy, low-cost solution to give the area a creative boost! Others spoke to me about the need for a youth centre and dedicated sports centre to improve provision here. High quality restaurants were also a point of conversation, and they were very supportive of the Globe Hotel project! It's so important to have input from our young people and I hope some of them will consider becoming councillors in the near future!"

Councillor Philip Pennington, Torridge Councillor for Monkleigh & Putford said;

"I thoroughly enjoyed attending the Democracy event at Great Torrington School. It is vital that we engage with residents of all ages throughout the district. The students shared well-informed and inspiring ideas, filling me with great confidence for our future!"

Charis Furness, Subject Lead for PSHE, Great Torrington School said;

"It was really interesting for pupils to have the chance to experience democracy at a local level, with a real-world application that was meaningful to them. The ideas for regenerating the Torrington area were both inspiring and controversial; I think they came away with a sense of hope and optimism to think that their opinions do matter and their voices are heard."

Mar 25