Students played host to a number of high-profile politicians earlier this month after BBC Radio 4 hosted its Any Questions programme at Heathfield School.

Labour MP and Shadow Brexit Secretary Sir Keir Starmer, Historian Max Hastings, former leader of the Conservative Party Lord Howard, and the SNP's Joanna Cherry MP were all in attendance as they were asked about a range of political, social and issues on Friday, June 7.

Pupils got ready for the event by hosting their very own Heathfield Question Time before the country’s top lawmakers came to Ascot.

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Rushi Millns, the girls’ independent boarding and day school’s Head of ICT, said: “Having students at the centre of the Heathfield Question Time was excellent preparation for hosting Any Questions?

“It reinforced that they do have a voice and that what governments decide affects all our lives, so we need to care and be involved.”

The school applied to host Any Questions in order to encourage its students to engage with politics and “deepen their understanding of the role each person plays in shaping society.

Headmistress Marina Gardiner Legge added: “Here at Heathfield one of our key values is to foster compassion, empathy, understanding and friendship by building respect for oneself and others.

“Participating in Any Questions? in our own school auditorium has been an inspiring experience, and one that has given our students a unique insight into political debate.

“Being able to listen to and understand different points of view, whilst knowing and expressing their own opinions, are skills that will stand our girls in good stead in all aspects of their lives”.

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The Any Questions panel discussed the 75th anniversary of D-Day, who the next Conservative Party leader might be, Brexit and the UK’s relationship with the EU, and the expansion of Heathrow and whether this is compatible with the fight against climate change.