By Anand Patel, Alex Woodford, Chris Lax, Chris Liu, Sinead Doyle O'Neill, George Walton and Nedal Ramahi. Katherine Berridge and Laura Brown also attended the conference.
"AS the nine Year 11 students from the Robert Smyth School participating in the Hands On Harborough conference, we started the first day feeling slightly daunted. However, as the conference progressed, we became more confident in talking in front of
an audience of approximately 60 people.
"We noticed that at the early stages of the conference, many participants had come with their own individual agendas, which they were keen to promote.
"As we advanced into the later phases, most people found common ground and started to work towards the targets set.
"One of the main themes earlier in the conference seemed to be focused around the lack of youth facilities in the town. Other trends included the environment, the arts, traffic management and crime. We were particularly interested in the development of youth facilities and the green issues. Everybody else's reactions to our views seemed quite positive.
"Overall, we found the conference a positive experience that helped build character and will lead on to some productive steps towards the future. We are hoping a sub-group will be established within our school that will work towards making Market Harborough a better place to live in."
