Staff Briefing: Restoration and renewal of the Palace of Westminster

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Members of the Commons and Lords Commissions have approved a new approach for how the programme to restore and renew the Palace of Westminster should be governed and delivered.

You can find out more here: https://committees.parliament.uk/committee/348/house-of-commons-commission/news/171414/joint-statement-from-the-house-of-commons-and-house-of-lords-commissions/

There will be a briefing presentation led by the House’s Restoration and Renewal Director, Charlotte Simmonds. All Members’ staff are welcome to attend to find out more about the proposed changes.

Time: 10:00 – 11:00
Date: Thursday 30 June 2022
Venue: Online via Teams

This briefing is not open to the public. If staff would like a link to join the meeting, please visit https://intranet.parliament.uk/business-news/news-current-issues/news/2022/june/member-staff-restoration-and-renewal/

Housing Casework Forum – 21 July 2022

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The Library, in conjunction with the Members’ Services Team, is pleased to invite you to the Casework Discussion Forum which will take place virtually each month.

The next session is taking place on Thursday 21 July, 2-3pm and will be a Q&A session on the topic of Housing. It will be led by Wendy Wilson from the Library.

The Forum will be complemented by a dedicated Teams chat which will allow you to share ideas and best practice, as well as support being on hand from the Library should specialist knowledge be required.

(Please note, you do not have to be a Caseworker to attend these sessions, they are open to any Members’ staff who handle casework.)

If you have any questions, please contact MST@parliament.uk

To book, please visit ACT: https://parliament.learningpool.com/mod/facetoface/view.php?id=5177

House Services Fair announced

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A House Services Fair will take place from Monday 11 – Tuesday 12 July organised by the Members’ Services Team and the Communications Office.

The House Services Fair is an opportunity for staff to connect to the parliamentary estate and with colleagues from teams across the House and Digital Service and will be open to all members of our parliamentary community, including Members and their staff.

There are a range of information stalls, tours, and talks available, and we encourage everyone to visit and take part, and encourage managers to provide time for colleagues to attend.

For more information, check the intranet

Casework forum

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The Commons Library, in conjunction with the Members’ Services Team, are pleased to announce a new series of talks on research, casework and policy to take place virtually each month.

The talks will cover a different topic each session as decided by Members’ staff, and the first event will be taking place Wednesday 22 June, 9.30 – 10.30am. You can book your place on ACT.

They will also be complemented by a dedicated Teams chat which will allow you to share ideas and best practice, as well as support being on hand from the Library should specialist knowledge be required.

Please note, you do not have to be a Caseworker to attend these sessions, they are open to any Members’ staff who handle casework. If you have any questions, please contact MST@parliament.uk

Parliamentary Netball Team

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A message from Caroline Dinenage MP:

Some of you may recall back in the dim, distant past of 2011, I ran a ‘Back to Netball’ course in partnership with England Netball for people working in Parliament.

Recently, prompted by a few enquiries from Members and staffers alike, I met with England Netball to discuss rebooting the programme. So this email is really about trying to get a feel for the level of interest.

The initial plan is to have a 10-12 week ‘Back to Netball’ plan of active coaching, ball-work and match play – ideally before work on a Tuesday or Wednesday. It doesn’t matter if you are a keen ‘net baller’, if you haven’t played since school, or ever! It will be for all ages, skill levels and finesses (trust me!!)

If there’s sufficient interest and enthusiasm, we could then look at setting up as an actual Parliament team, with a view to playing a few games and maybe even entering into a local league.

If you wish to take part, please email Caroline Dinenage.

Best Practice Guide on Whistleblowing – Guidance for MPs as Employers

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Following the recent publication of the Best Practice Guide on Whistleblowing (guidance for MPs as employers). The Members’ HR Team would like to invite you to join them for one of the upcoming familiarisation sessions that will provide information that sets out the way in which employees may raise a whistleblowing concern and how those concerns should be addressed.

The session will cover:

  • What is considered as a whistleblowing concern
  • How a whistleblowing disclosure is raised
  • The legal protection and requirements under whistleblowing law
  • The practical steps that should be taken to ensure a fair and thorough investigation

30 June, 9.30am https://parliament.learningpool.com/mod/facetoface/view.php?id=5192

28 July, 9.30am https://parliament.learningpool.com/mod/facetoface/view.php?id=5193

All MP Staff Q&A – Home Office / Ukraine

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Due to high demand, MST is repeating the event it originally ran on 23 May.

They are very lucky to be joined by Katie Shooter from the Home Office who can answer your queries on visa applications and Homes for Ukraine sponsors.

The session will be taking place on Tuesday 21 June, 11am – 12pm and you can book your place here.

If you would like to submit a question, please email MST@parliament.uk

Here is the recording of the original event  All Staff Question and Answer Session with Home Office-20220523_143037-Meeting Recording.mp4

If you did NOT attend, last time, it is recommended you watch the session recording before submitting a question so we do not receive duplicate queries.

TFL Industrial Action – Monday 6 June 2022

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TfL have advised of industrial action which will cause severe disruption across the network on Monday 6 June until 8am the following morning. It is expected that many stations, especially those in central London will be closed.  Train services will still run but will only be stopping at stations that are open. You can view the latest information and advice on the TFL website.

If you use TFL services please check before you travel, allow more time for your journey, and travel at quieter times where possible. 

Further information

Contact saaenquiries@parliament.uk for questions about access or psdenquiries@parliament.uk for questions about security. 

Casework discussion sessions

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The Library, in conjunction with the Members’ Services Team, is pleased to announce a new series of Casework talks to take place virtually each month.

The talks will cover a different topic each session as decided by Members’ staff, and the first event will be taking place Wednesday 22 June, 9.30 – 10.30am. You can book your place via ACT here.

The talks will be complemented by a dedicated Teams chat which will allow you to share ideas and best practice, as well as support being on hand from the Library should specialist knowledge be required.

(Please note, you do not have to be a Caseworker to attend these sessions, they are open to any Members’ staff who handle casework.)

If you have any questions, please contact MST@parliament.uk