On Tuesday 8th October, the RRS Council went on a trip to The Houses of Parliament. It was a wonderful experience; we loved seeing how the country was run and being around those who must protect our rights. The trip started with an early morning drop off at the Woodford station, before a less than pleasant rush hour train journey to Westminster! Once we finally arrived, it was incredible! The Houses of Parliament towered over us the minute we stepped out of the station and the inside was just as glamorous. We soon met our guide, who was really kind, and put on our tour headsets. These were so that the tour guide did not have to shout, and could instead talk to us through a mouthpiece.
We then looked inside the House of Commons. Our guide told us how the arguments worked, and I was surprised to hear how rushed it was there. You would have to reserve a seat, the speaker would call out your number when you wanted to have a say, and there would be men running around in fancy suits with neck ruffles, making sure you weren’t late for an argument!
Finally, we saw The House of Lords. It was a lot fancier (the King’s throne sat at the end of the room) and it was a lot easier to speak in debates. Our tour guide explained that Lords were chosen, rather than democratically voted, and didn’t get paid. I really enjoyed our trip to parliament and hope that future RRS council representatives will get the chance to go too!
By Josephine 6JM, Chair of RRS Council
Categories: Educational Visit RRS
