Making voices heard
Mrs Farmer, Form Teacher Upper II Alpha, reports on the recent visit of Upper IIA and Upper II Alpha to the Houses of Parliament.
‘On Wednesday 27th January 2016, Upper II had the opportunity to live and breathe the seat of British values – the Houses of Parliament. We walked the path of Queen Elizabeth II at the Opening of Parliament, wandered through the Robing Room, then into the Prince’s Chamber to emerge in the House of Lords. Despite the chairs looking wondrously comfortable, no-one sat down owing to the fact that none of us were baronesses.
One of our Upper IIs reports, ‘There was a golden throne for the queen that was so bright it made my eyes hurt to look upon it!’ What she would have given to sit on it… Lizzie, Matthew, Stella and Pete, our tour guides, guided us through the history and anecdotes of the building that was once inhabited by King Henry VIII. They also informed us of what was involved in the writing and ratifying of bills that become laws.
A highlight of the trip was meeting the local MP, Dr Rupa Huq. This, combined with a workshop illustrating the importance of ‘Your Voice’ allowed the girls the opportunity to understand why and how to make our voices heard. In the workshop we played games to learn how campaigns are organised and run; we voted on issues and persuaded members of Upper II who had been nominated as a member of the public, a baroness from the House of Lords and an MP from the House of Commons to agree our campaigns.
Many students say that they ‘would really recommend the trip as it was fun and informative’. Another adds that it was ‘inspirational! I now want to be an MP and represent my area for the things that are important to us.’ The rain did not dampen the spirits of our strong young women who gained a little more of an understanding of the importance of our voices.’
