Netherhall Y7 students share how £20 million should be spent

We were delighted to visit Netherhall School before the summer break to judge the Year 7 £20 Million Maryport Grant Project, which challenged students to think about how investment could make Maryport South an even better place to live.

As part of the project, students walked around their local area to identify what was missing, what could be improved, and what would make the biggest difference to local people. Each student developed a funding proposal before each class selected a winning idea to present to the Maryport South Pride in Place Board.

The presentations were incredibly thoughtful, creative and well researched. Ideas ranged from a new fish restaurant, cinema, a music sop, arcade and even a haunted house, through to projects focused on supporting people with disabilities and creating a hardship fund for families on low incomes. The variety of ideas showed just how much local young people care about their community and its future.

Board members then had the difficult task of selecting the overall winners from the class finalists, with three students receiving top awards for their presentations.

A huge thank you to all the students and staff involved. It was inspiring to hear so many great ideas and to see young people thinking positively about how they can help shape the future of Maryport South. Their creativity, passion and local knowledge will be invaluable as Pride in Place continues to put community voices at the heart of decision-making.