Voices blog

I was immediately intrigued by an email titled ‘The Big Lunch’ that landed in my inbox last week. The Big Lunch is an Eden Project initiative which aims to build and strengthen communities by encouraging people to have lunch with their neighbours.

The project brings communities together in a fun, simple and food-based way (which is, in my opinion, one of the best ways to get to know people). Last year Big Lunches took place in every kind of community from the most challenged to the most secure and as a result over 80 per cent of participants now say they feel closer to their neighbours.

So if you want to get to know your neighbours better, get involved in your community and have a lovely big lunch to boot take a look at their website to see if there’s a Big Lunch happening near you www.thebiglunch.com.

This year The Big Lunch takes place on Sunday 18 July.

Channel 4 Education has a range of game and video resources aimed at young people (age 10 - 19). These can be used in the classroom and cover several curriculum subjects (some are adaptable for citizenship lessons).

I particularly liked Battlefront a range of campaign videos that tackle subjects such as diversity, democracy and justice. And there is also an online game called Smokescreen that aims to raise young people’s awareness about their own and others’ behaviour online, including topics such as cyber bullying, data protection online and online stalking.

‘Dear Prime Minister,
I am sure you are thoroughly delighted to have this important job as the newly elected Prime Minister, although millions of people are counting on you to do an astonishing job’ writes Giacomo, age 11, in his letter to Number 10 reflecting on the gravity of the decision made today by all of us eligible to vote.

Giacomo is just one of the 342 children from across the country who entered the Go-Givers Election Competition with plenty to say about what the new Prime Minister needs to do to make Britain a better place.  Whilst primary children may not be able to vote in this election they know a lot about the issues facing the country and as Katie, age 10, explains ‘would like to be heard as well as grown-ups are.’

From personal concerns such as SATs that are ‘torture to the brain’, and living in a damp house that ‘nobody will do anything about’, to global problems like the economic crisis and the destruction of the rainforest, which is ‘a huge mistake because (trees) clean our air’, the children’s letters show a real understanding of the many issues the new Prime Minister will need to address over the next 5 years.

Reading the letters I am impressed by the level of empathy shown for the many groups of people struggling in our society such as the elderly, homeless people and families on low incomes as well as children’s expressions of concern for problems like knife crime, animal testing, vandalism in their local area, nuclear weapons and the safety of troops serving in Afghanistan.

The children’s closing remarks thank the Prime Minister for listening to them; Kyra writes ‘I thank you dearly for reading this letter.  I’m sorry for taking your time away (as Prime Ministers are busy) Thank you again.’ and Thomas writes ‘Thank you for reading my opinion…I hope that you feel as passionate as I do!’

Thankfully for whoever lands the top job tomorrow the children do recognise that the Prime Minister will not be able to do everything asked of them.  As Stevie, age 8, writes ‘Please will you read these carefully and will you do something about it. Thank you if you can do all these things, if you can’t that’s ok!’