On Monday 29 January, 46 Sixth Form students and four members of staff from Frome College had an unusually early start at 7.00am heading towards London and the Houses of Parliament.
“Having arrived in Westminster, we strolled around Parliament Square taking in our surroundings,” said Amelia Rigby, teacher of Sociology & law.
“The first stop was a tour of the Houses of Parliament; the students were fascinated by the grandeur of the building and the ‘excessive’ (quote – Seb Costello, Year 13) use of gold plating in the décor.
“They were guided by knowledgeable and engaging Education Officers who provided an insight into the inner workings of Parliament, and its most unusual traditions. The first question put to the guide was of course, ‘Will we see Jeremy Corbyn?’
“We were able to stand at John Bercow’s desk, and hover in front of the opposition’s green seats in the House of Commons. We admired the throne of the Monarch in the House of Lords, and even caught a glimpse of Winston Churchill’s Grandson.
“We then attended a ‘Law Making’ workshop where students were put into 2 teams and competed in a quiz.
“Then, in a role play of a Parliamentary Debate, in which Toby Paton was elected Speaker of the House, while Chloe Fordham and Tiffany Lee were party leaders. The students entered a furious debate about lowering the voting age to 16, in which the final vote was a surprising yet resounding ‘No’. Toby did a great job of shouting ‘ORDER, ORDER’ in true Bercow fashion.
“We then made the short walk to the Supreme Court where we were given a tour, and were able to sit in each of the 3 court rooms.
“We discussed and debated the outcome of significant rulings from the Supreme Court, including the Gina Miller case in the wake of Brexit, a shocking decision involving a joint enterprise shooting, and finally the outcome of right to religion human rights deliberation.
“A brilliant day was had by all. Many thanks to Roland Hurrell, Brenda Driessen and Jennie Smith for their help and support on the day.
