Visit to the Houses of Parliament

We had a great visit to London today as we took a group of our young participants to the Houses of Parliament. We have been working with a group of young people from Betaris Training this year. We’ve had them out and about doing bits of volunteering and community work. When we talked about what the group might like to thank them for all the time they have put in someone suggested a trip to London. We then managed to combine that with a visit to Parliament.

We had a guided tour around the Palace of Westminster learning about history of the building as well as the foundations of our democracy. Most of us were staggered by how incredible ornate the architecture and the décor inside the building was. We saw the Queen’s Robing Room, her throne and statues of past Prime Ministers such as Winston Churchill and Margaret Thatcher. The highlight for most of us was of course standing inside the House of Commons where all those political debates (and arguments) happen!

We were also really lucky to spend time with Gloucester MP Richard Graham. He talked to the group about life in politics as well as taking questions on apprenticeships, jobs for people with learning disabilities, brexit and much more. Most of the group were just at that age where they would be looking at work or getting into apprenticeships and so these were important issues.

It was a really eye opening and interesting experience. As one of our young people said “The trip was very informative and inspiring. Meeting with Richard Graham gave me lots of new ideas about apprenticeships and what employers might expect.”

We’d like to say a huge thanks to Richard Graham. He sponsored our trip and took time out of his busy schedule to spend with us.