Film and TV students from Saffron Walden are playing a central role in Question Cambridgeshire – an innovative TV debate among leading county councillors.
The Question Time-style TV programme, involving local politicians from all five parties, is thought to be a first for Cambridgeshire, and is being staged by award-winning community website ShapeYourPlace.org.
The debate, which will take place at Cambridge Regional College on June 19, will be recorded live by the students and broadcast the next day via shapeyourplace.org.
Saffron Walden students Josh Manuel and Jack Carrington are two of the three cameramen on the project – and have already had some of their work published on the Shape Your Place website.
Josh, 19, of Deynes Road, said it was a great experience to be working on a live project.
“It is very important and something we can put in our portfolios. I’m going to study film and TV production at university and this can help me in the industry – we’re working on a live project, which is great experience,” he said.
Nineteen year-old Jack, who lives in West Road, is also planning a career in the industry – he is off to university to study TV post-production when he leaves CRC this summer.
“The opportunity to work on filming the debate is so valuable. When I go for a job interview I can say that I’ve worked on a live assignment with really good resources,” he said.
Five county councillors representing each of the political groups at Cambridgeshire County Council will take part – Steve Count (Conservative), John Hipkin (Independent), Peter Reeve (UKIP), Amanda Taylor (Liberal Democrat) and Ashley Walsh (Labour).
Local people can pose questions via ShapeYourPlace.org, tweet them to @shapeyourplace or post them on the ShapeYourPlace Facebook page, with the students choosing the final questions.
ShapeYourPlace.org is a community website developed by Cambridgeshire County Council to help people raise issues about where they live and get in touch with councillors and local organisations, including the police, councils and the fire service.
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