Students hosted a mock General Election ahead of the district's count last week.

The 16 to 18-year-old’s from Davenant Foundation School in Chester Road, Loughton, casted their votes in mock polls on Thursday (May 7) following speeches by fellow students.

The school campaign involved five parties; Conservatives, Labour, Liberal Democrats, Green and UKIP, each represented by a member of the Sixth Form.

Students alternated in staging election speeches and a special Question Time saw the young candidates grilled on their policies regarding issues such as the economy, the deficit, the NHS and tuition fees.

Mirroring the results from Epping Forest’s count, which saw MP Eleanor Laing re-elected to represent the district with a 55 per cent share of the vote, the teenagers selected the Conservative party as their in-school winner.

Headteacher Chris Seward said: “Having an election in the school allows the students to ask questions and find out more about party policies and the working of the voting system.

“We even had a proper polling booth so students in one class were able to experience the moment of secretly placing a cross on a voting paper.

“Some of our Sixth Form voted for the first time this year and our school election will have helped them get engaged and understand more of the issues.”