BBC television’s Sunday Politics had a new presenter this weekend in the form of an award winning city youngster Ashley Mansell.
The 16-year-old, from Bonymaen, took to the interviewer’s chair at the show and was filmed questioning Nick Servini, BBC Wales political correspondent.
His dream of visiting the show came true because Ashley won a High 5 Award for his work within his local community and the Rotary Club of Swansea stepped in to give him a once in a lifetime prize.
It meant this weekend, courtesy of BBC Wales, Ashley was given a chance to visit BBC Wales studios in Llandaff to see how the Sunday politics programme was put together.
Ashley, who has a keen interest in politics and works to encourage young people to take an interest and vote too, said: “It was a once in a lifetime opportunity which I will treasure. I really enjoyed the whole day which was very interesting. I picked up a lot in a few hours.
“I would like to work in politics or political journalism in the future so it has given me more understanding and something I can include on my CV too.”
Tony Beddow, secretary of the Rotary Club of Swansea, said: “The High 5 awards and the way they celebrate young people and enable them to inspire others is exactly why the Rotary Club has been involved with them from the start.
“One of the nice things about the awards is the unique prizes designed around the youngsters themselves and we are delighted to be part of making some of those special experiences happen.
“We are very grateful to the BBC for making Ashley’s wish come true and the thought they put into making the day such a memorable experience.”
Ashley was presented with a High 5 Award by Swan’s star Leon Britton earlier this month for community work including supporting young people in Bonymaen Kids Play Initiative, volunteering at a local foodbank, helping with fundraising, running a drama club for local people, volunteering at a charity shop and encouraging people in the community to vote in elections.
As well as being filmed asking the questions of Nick Servini, Ashley’s prize also gave him the chance to see the Sunday Politics show being prepared by the producer Marl Palmer and his colleagues and watch the programme being broadcast live from the production gallery. He also met Paul Flynn MP for Newport who was a guest on the programme too.
Among his other prizes for his High 5 win Ashley is now also looking forward to attending Prime Ministers Question time in the future as a guest of Caroline Harries MP.
The High 5 Awards are run by Swansea Council and its partners to celebrate the achievements of its young people across Swansea and enable them to inspire others.
To find out more about the awards and this year’s winners go to http://www.swansea.gov.uk/high5awards
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