The Sixth Form Politics Society (PolSoc) has been busy bringing democracy to life for the whole school community, running a full mock election using the Additional Member System (AMS) – the same hybrid voting model used in Wales and Scotland.
Two weeks before polling day, six students took to the stage for a lively hustings: four from the Upper Sixth and two from the Lower Sixth, each representing a political party. “Hosting the debate was definitely my favourite part,” said Duncan, U6 and PolSoc Co-President. “It taught me so much about elections and how to organise a big event, something I hadn’t really done before.”
Last Friday, around 200 students headed to the polling booth in the Circus – expertly staffed by Mrs Poole – to cast two votes: one for a candidate and another for a party. Candidate votes were counted by year group, with the winning candidate in each year taking all of that year’s seats. Party votes then determined the share of 30 additional seats, bringing AMS to life in a meaningful and practical way.
A dedicated team of student counters – Zara, Anna, Katy and Nell – handled the tally with impressive efficiency. The final result showed no overall majority from the 80 seats available, but produced an exciting distribution:
Greens 31
Reform UK 21
Liberal Democrats 19
Conservatives 6
Scottish Nationalist Party 2
Labour 1
“We’re so grateful to Mr Timm, Mr Blaize and Mr Hardman for supporting the event, and to everyone who helped make it happen,” Duncan added. “It was a brilliant experience.”
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