3rd February 2023
Protective Services students visited key sites in London, including the Houses of Parliament, meeting local MP Jon Cruddas.
Part of their BTEC requires them to learn about how the Government and the Protective Services interact with each other.
They visited New Scotland Yard (Police), The Ministry of Defence (Military & Government Offices), Horse Guards Parade (Army), Trafalgar Square and Buckingham Palace. Many of the students have never seen these sights before and were very appreciative of the tour.
Following the sightseeing, they had an internal tour of the Houses of Parliament, spending most of their time in the House of Lords, as Prime Minister’s Questions were happening in the Commons. The students saw the throne where the sovereign sits to open Parliament and where our laws are debated and scrutinised. They also saw the Great Hall, the oldest part of the Houses of Parliament, where the Queen laid in state, and where dignitaries such as Barak Obama and Nelson Mandala held speeches.
After the tour, the students participated in a debating workshop; where they debated a new law; the topic they chose was voluntary euthanasia, resulting in a very heated debate.
At the end of the debate, the MP for Dagenham & Rainham, John Cruddas met with the students and spoke about his role as an MP. Jon Cruddas MP said: “It was really good to meet up with the Protective Services students at the Houses of Parliament recently. We talked about my role as an MP and discussed how the cost of living is affecting their households; for example, more funding is needed for students to be able to afford to go on valued educational trips like this one. I taught them a bit about lobbying and am looking forward to receiving some lobbying emails from the students.”
Student Maisie Lethbridge, 18 commented: "It was a very good educational experience, I really enjoyed learning about how laws are made first-hand. The tour of the House of Lords was awesome. We met Jon Cruddas our MP and discussed how he can support the young people in Dagenham and students on the Protective Services course at the college. He was very impressed with our questioning and debating skills. We had a great day!"
Gwen Edwards, Protective Services Lecturer said: “They have learnt the subject of Government and, with the help of Jon Cruddas, MP, experiencing the process of how the political system works. Our students looked so smart in their formal attire - an important employability skill learnt; dress professionally, which will lead to a positive first impression. I was very proud.”
