Last week, I had the pleasure of welcoming students from Hartpury College to Parliament. The group of 32 Year 12 students visited the House of Commons and House of Lords as part of their Uniformed Public Services course.
The students listened to a talk about how legislation is made. The session also featured an interactive workshop. I enjoyed seeing the students act out a parliamentary debate on road safety, and I was impressed by the quality of arguments put forward by both sides of the debate. I was happy to round off the session by answering their questions about Parliament and my role as an MP.
Parliament is a fantastic educational resource, where students can learn all about British politics. The Parliamentary Education Centre, opened in July 2015, runs a year-round programme of school visits for students aged 5 to 18, providing a fantastic opportunity for young people to engage with Parliament and democracy.
If you would like to book a school visit, please get in touch either by emailing me at mark.harper.mp@parliament.uk, or by visiting http://www.parliament.uk/schoolvisits/, where you can find more information on the workshops the Education Centre offers. Workshops do book up some months in advance, so please do give as much notice as possible.
Parliament is not just for MPs. It is important that the next generation of voters have the opportunity to see how their Parliament and their MP works on their behalf.