Chief executive sets pupils a maths test

It was a question he put to pupils when he spoke to them recently. But though they eventually reached the right answer, the chief executive is not revealing it.

Writing in Rother Bulletin, Mr Stevens says: "As part of our work in developing closer links with the schools in the district, I have taken the opportunity to visit a number of our primary schools, and spend time with the teachers and pupils, with the aim of developing closer links with the council and our work.

"I was therefore delighted to be invited to this year's leavers' ceremony for Year 6 pupils of Chantry Community Primary School.

"I felt very honoured to be asked to give a brief speech to the children and to present awards to Year 6 leavers.

"Whilst I was there ostensibly in my role as chief executive of Rother District Council, I was also there as an 'old boy' of Chantry, a school which I attended a few years ago.

"On this point, I asked the children to guess how long ago I had been a pupil at the school, and when the first one said 20 years I guess I should have stopped at that point, however, it became very much an auction and eventually they got the answer, which it would of course be unfair of me to reveal in this article.