Free Parliamentary training opportunity for teachers in your constituency: 3-day Teachers’ Institute: 26^th – 28^th January 2015

Parliament’s Education Service will be hosting a new 3-day Teachers’ Institute residential course in Westminster, 26^th – 28^thJanuary 2015, and applications are now open.  The Teachers’ Institute is a unique professional development opportunity, enabling teachers to experience Parliament in action during an informative, interactive and unforgettable three days based at the Houses of Parliament.

Transport and accommodation costs are covered for all delegates, and applications are welcome from teachers and other professionals working with children aged 7-18 across Citizenship, Politics, Law, History and other related subjects. For more details and an application form, visit www.parliament.uk/teachers-institute

From The Bookseller:

Four “outstanding examples of non-fiction books” make up the shortlist for the 2014 Educational Writers’ Award.

The award, run by the Authors Licensing and Collecting Society (ALCS) and the Society of Authors (SoA), celebrates educational writing that “inspires creativity and encourages students to read widely and build up their understanding of a subject beyond the requirements of exam specifications”.

The books on the shortlist are aimed at children and teenagers aged between 11 and 18.

The shortlist includes Keep Your Cool: How to Deal with Life’s Worries and Stress (Franklin Watts) by Dr Aaron Balick and illustrated by Clotilde Szymanski, which aims to help children deal with issues including bullying, family strife and exam panic.

The judges said the book has “just the right tone and masses of helpful suggestions”.

Mission: Explore FOOD (Can of Worms) by The Geography Collective, illustrated by Tom Morgan-Jones, is an “alternative cookbook” with food-related missions to complete, with the idea of turning you into an extreme explorer and guerrilla geographer. The judges said it was a “varied, imaginative, lively inter-disciplinary approach to food, both on the plate and on its way there”.

The Danger Zone: Avoid Being Sir Isaac Newton! (Book House) by Ian Graham and illustrated by David Antram puts the readers in the place of Newton. The judges said it was a “fascinating look at the man behind the theories of gravity, optics and calculus – tantrums, heresy, warts and all”.

The final book on the shortlist is The World in Infographics: Animal Kingdom (Wayland) by Jon Richards & Ed Simkins, which visualises animal life in icons, pictograms and graphics. The judges said the information was “presented through brilliant, easy-to-read infographics”.

This year’s judges are teacher Vanessa Casey; school librarian Aidan Higgins; and author Anne Rooney.

The winner of the 2014 Educational Writers’ Award will be announced at the All Party Writers Group (APWG) Winter Reception at the House of Commons on Tuesday 2nd December.

The winning author will receive a cheque for £2,000.

The latest MAPSA newsletter can now be read on w4mp.

MAPSA Newsletter

The President of the Republic of Singapore, during his State Visit, will address Members of both Houses of Parliament onTuesday 21 October between 4.30pm – 5.25pm in the Queen’s Robing Room. 

Members, Members’ Staff and Staff of both Houses are also welcome to attend.

No tickets are required; attendees are requested to arrive no later than 4.20pm.

 

We don’t normally advertise political thrillers here on w4mp – well, we don’t get told about them that often – but when it’s written by one our own we think it’s worth a mention.  Two years ago Emma Gray – writing as Emma Greenway –  published her first novel, Party Games, and we gave it a bit of a push. And now she’s done it again, with the sequel, Power Play, available an ebook from October 10;

 

Power Play

Treason is a hanging offence..

As Conservative Party leader Rodney Richmond lies in a coma, his ambitious deputy Colin Scott vows to force unquestioning loyalty to himself on a party which is at breaking point. Dubbed ‘the Führer’ by Labour MPs, his core supporters – including a morally conflicted colleague and an obsessed, ruthless advisor – will do anything to get their man, and themselves, to the top. But there is a threat from within, one so determined they will resort to murder before they see Scott fail, and soon civil war erupts among Scott’s most senior lieutenants.

While the true leader of the so-called ‘resistance’ remains unconscious, their female rising star emerges to challenge Scott’s seemingly unbreakable and brutal authority.

Power Play continues the theme of corrupting power and infighting at the heart of E J Greenway’s first novel, Party Games. It is a wry look at what could happen if a modern day political party, finding itself in Opposition after years in power, embraces a narcissistic maniac who promises to bring it back from the brink at any cost.

Although Power Play is the dramatic sequel to Party Games, it can be read as a stand-alone book.

Where to get it

You can buy the book here on Amazon:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Power-Play-E-J-Greenway-ebook/dp/B00O75RIZ4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1412593453&sr=8-1&keywords=e+j+greenway+power+play

A bit about Emma

Emma has always loved writing and politics, so she combined the two from an early age and began writing humorous stories at the age of 11, when she penned her first political ‘thriller’, The Plan to Assassinate the Prime Minister.

Now, 24 years later, Emma has worked at Westminster for over 12 years and wanted to capture the fascination of the Westminster village, its excitement and power, through the telling of what is essentially a human drama, set in a closely-knit, somewhat insular ‘pressure cooker’ world. Party Games was her first novel under the pen name E J Greenway in 2012 and in October 2014 the sequel, Power Play, has hit the virtual shelves.

Emma also has a blog and has written for various online publications such as Backbench, Conservative Home and Total Politics.

Emma lived in Liverpool until she was 18 and now lives in Winchester with her husband, two children and a very feisty guinea pig.

 

The Speaker has ruled that Members may use the Crowned Portcullis symbol on wreaths they buy to lay at Remembrance Sunday ceremonies in their capacity as a Member of Parliament.

The wreath should not be in any way party political: the use of the Portcullis on wreaths on behalf of a constituency association or including any party political symbol is not permitted.

Members can obtain an electronic copy of the Crowned Portcullis for this purpose from Nick Battley, in Print Services (by email [email protected] or on x6208).

The Royal British Legion Poppy Appeal office are able to provide the wreaths if Members wish to order through them.They can be contacted on 01622 717172 or by sending the form linked to here back to them by the 22nd October.

Royal British Legion wreath order form (Word Document)

Parliament co-teaches a module with 13 different universities from around the UK called ‘Parliamentary Studies’, giving politics students an in depth knowledge of how Parliament works, and there is an opportunity for an MPs’ researcher/researchers to give a talk to Leeds University students for the  module

Students taking the module at the University of Leeds will be visiting Parliament on the 26th November 2014. We are currently looking for a confident person/group of people that work closely with MPs, to give a talk to these students about the inner workings of an MP’s office. This will be held in the Palace of Westminster at 13:45-14:30.

If you think you may be interested in this opportunity, please contact L’myah Ross at [email protected]

 

The Year Here Fellowship describes itself as ‘an ambitious, creative and rigorous 7-month course in social innovation’ and offers an opportunity to develop solutions to social problems supported by a network that includes Citizens UK, FutureGov, Bain & Company and the Cabinet Office.

They are looking for graduates who are serious about making society better and offer successful applicants a great opportunity that includes:

Working with a mentor to advise you.

Four months spent in homeless shelters, care homes and community centres understanding first-hand the daily realities of people living at the margins of society and designing an Innovation Project to boost your placement’s impact.

Training and coaching from a faculty of more than 60 experts, learning all about society’s problems and how to tackle them effectively.

Tuition fees are covered, and accommodation/bursaries may be available.

Full details at http://yearhere.org

The Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology (POST) runs a series of seminars and receptions while Parliament is sitting, kicking off with a seminar on Palliative and End of Life Care in the Attlee Suite on October 14 from 1600-1800.

If you would like further details, all the  events can be viewed (and places booked) on the POST website at http://www.parliament.uk/mps-lords-and-offices/offices/bicameral/post/post-events/

 

The Office of the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards has recently published a new rulebook for APGs. Acquaint and reacquaint yourself with the rules here: https://www.parliament.uk/about/mps-and-lords/members/apg/rules-on-appgs/

For more information on All-Party Groups, see here and here.