Students visit the Labour Party Conference

At the end of September, we took a group of our U6th Politics students to the Labour Party Conference in Liverpool. We had enquired about visiting the Conservative Party Conference in Birmingham and the Green Party Conference in Harrogate but neither party was able to organise things in time for a visit this year. The role of political parties in UK democracy is a key part of the Politics A Level course so getting a chance to see a major party conference was a real benefit to those who chose to come along. They were able to watch speeches by prominent Labour MPs and Shadow Cabinet members such as Angela Rayner and Bridget Phillipson. They also got a sense of how internal party democracy works during policy votes on education funding and were able to watch often very young local party activists take to the stage to make impassioned speeches about the issues of the day.

One of the main things party conferences involve is pressure groups and businesses seeking to influence party policy – students were able to speak to a wide variety of such organisations during the course of their visit, including the NFU and the NASUWT. To round off the day, students were given the chance to explore central Liverpool to get a bite to eat before visiting the International Slavery Museum near the Royal Albert Dock. Like other cities in the UK, notably Bristol and Glasgow, Liverpool has a troubling relationship with the Atlantic slave trade. It was good for students to see that the city has made every effort to acknowledge that history with such a thought provoking and well curated museum.

Further Information

Politics A level
You can find other politics related courses using the course directory.