Senior School Pupils Visit Houses of Parliament

The Sixth Form Politics students joined with the Senior School Debating Club for a wonderful London Excursion that included visiting the Houses of Parliament, the Cabinet War Rooms, the Churchill Museum and the National Gallery. Our local MP, Andrea Leadsom, had kindly arranged the visit which was greatly enjoyed by all. The day opened with a tour of the underground Cabinet War Rooms used by Winston Churchill during the Second World War that included a glimpse inside the Prime Minister’s personal toilet, in fact a hotline room to President Roosevelt, the living quarters of the Prime Minister where he enjoyed his daily eight cigars and seemingly endless champagne, and the Cabinet Room itself where many critical decisions for the future of the nation were made. We then visited the National Gallery to look at the ten most important pictures that included the Sunflowers of Van Gogh, The Hay Wain of Constable and the Fighting Temeraire of Turner. The visit to the Palace of Westminster allowed the group to travel the journey of the monarch when arriving for the opening of parliament, to stand (but definitely not to sit) in the House of Lords and House of Commons, and to stand in Westminster Hall on the site of great speeches by Nelson Mandela and Barack Obama, the lying in state of monarchs, and the scene of the trial of King Charles I. It was an amazing day of history and politics, made all the more special by the impeccable behaviour of all of the students. The day ended with a crossing of Westminster Bridge to enjoy a meal at the side of the Thames.