Students studying for A Levels in Government and Politics or Law at Nelson and Colne College Sixth Form have enjoyed a visit from the Mayor of Pendle.
The Worshipful Mayor of Pendle, Councillor Nadeem Ahmed visited the students to explain his role in the council as well as his work as a solicitor.
To begin the session, Councillor Ahmed talked about the role of the Mayor in the Council, including the many responsibilities this title entails. He then talked about his background as a student from Nelson and Colne College. He explained how he had initially wanted to study science subjects, but realised early on that these subject weren’t best suited to him and with help and guidance he changed to study A Levels in Psychology, Business Studies, Law and Urdu.
After his presentation, students were able to participate in a question and answer session, where they debated local issues such as the breakdown of local businesses, as well as more national issues such as unemployment and student fees. Councillor Ahmed said, “I have some great memories from my time as a student at Nelson and Colne College and thoroughly enjoyed studying at such a fantastic college. I owe a lot to my teachers and the College who gave me the motivation and encouragement to go on and pursue a career in the legal profession; it was for this reason I wanted to use the opportunity to visit and speak to some students. It was a great honour to attend as Mayor of Pendle and speak about my role as Mayor as well as speaking about how I became a solicitor. I really enjoyed my time speaking to the students and I hope I was able to give some words of encouragement. We have a lot of talented and bright young people in Pendle who I am confident will make a positive contribution to Pendle in the future.”
Rachel McLaughlin, Curriculum Leader Humanities and Social Science said, “Not only did the students learn about the functional role of the Council and Mayor, but they were also able develop skills in research as they were tasked with creating questions prior to the Mayor’s arrival at College. They also developed communication skills and were able to strengthen their debate techniques, discussing issues where their classmates held opposing views. One of the key messages that Councillor Ahmed put across to the students is that hard work pays off! He highlighted that you don’t necessarily need to be a straight A student to progress and achieve your goals. He also got across the importance of enjoying what you do and explained that this is why he wanted to be the Mayor in the first place… He enjoys working hard and trying to make a difference to his local community.”
