We were very pleased to welcome more than 40 local women to a workshop on ‘Parliament & Women’ held at Balsall Heath Children’s Centre. Our mums arrived at 9.30am, settled the children in the crèche, joined us for a quick breakfast and then we were straight into the proceedings of the day.
Claire Mullin, from The Parliament Team gave us all an understanding of how Parliament works and the important roles played by the House of Commons, The House of Lords and The Queen. We learnt that the colours for the House of Lords are red, the House of Commons are green and The Queen’s colours for the State Opening of Parliament are purple. This tradition goes back to a time when purple dye; ermine, was very expensive to produce and export.
We learnt about democracy and how we all play an important part. The best part of the morning was listening to the ladies as they led to their own election campaigns. With a ballot taking place, our Prime Minister and her Cabinet were duly elected!
A quick buffet lunch followed, allowing the mums a few minutes to socialise and then on to collect their children. It was a great morning as we all enjoyed a new learning experience. We look forward to building on this important work.
Hafsha Shaikh,
Nov, 2017