Caseworker Discussion Forum: Ombudsman schemes (UK wide)

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Time: 14:30-15:30
Date: 4 June 2025
Location: Teams

With Donal Galligan (Chief Executive of the Ombudsman Association) and Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO) staff, as well as Library specialists covering different ombudsman schemes
Also: Digital Services staff will give a quick update on the Register of Interests for Members Staff service

To register, please visit https://parliament.learningpool.com/course/view.php?id=1953

The House magazine and the Staff Room newsletter present: The House Staffer Network series

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Building on the success of last year’s packed The House magazine Staffer Reception and the launch of The Staff Room newsletter now with over 700 subscribers, we’re excited to expand our support for parliamentary staff with The House Staffer Network series.

Hosted in Parliament, these in-person workshops are designed to help you sharpen your skills, tackle real workplace challenges, and connect with peers from across the political spectrum. Whether you’re new to Westminster or looking to make a greater impact in your role, this is your space to learn, share, and grow.

The first workshop you can sign up to attend is: HEALTH AND WELLBEING IN THE WORKPLACE

Tuesday, 1 July 2025 | 19:15 – 21:00 | Attlee Suite, Portcullis House

In this workshop, we’ll cover:

  • Practical wellbeing tips for maintaining balance in your busy role
  • Strategies for supporting colleagues and fostering a healthy work environment
  • Tools to enhance your personal and team wellbeing

Sign up here

All workshops will include an informal reception, offering a chance to network with other staffers and discuss shared challenges and experiences.

If you would prefer to RSVP via email or if you have any questions about the event, please do not hesitate to contact us here.

And if you haven’t already, don’t miss out – sign up to the Staff Room newsletter from The House today.

Avoid health misinformation: Improving constituents’ health literacy

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Good Information Toolkit Talk from the House of Commons Library

How does health literacy impact constituents and the NHS? Join us for an essential session focused on improving health literacy, where we will ask:

What is health literacy?

  • Understand the fundamentals and why it’s important for effective communication in our communities.
    Why does it matter to the NHS and your constituents?
  • Discover how improved health literacy can lead to better patient outcomes, reduce health inequalities, and help you support your constituents.
  • How can we empower constituents to understand information about their health
  • Explore how we can improve understanding in written and verbal information. We’ll also step into the shoes of patients who don’t understand what they’re being told about their health, and think about how we can communicate with empathy.

If you’re working in a constituency, this session can help you engage with communities about their health and support informed decision-making.

Time: 14:00
Date: 20 May 2025
Location: Online
Further information and registration: https://parliament.learningpool.com/mod/facetoface/view.php?id=7476

Casework Discussion Forum: Local transport Q&A

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Time: 14:30 – 15:30
Date: 8 May 2025
Location: Online via MS Teams

The Casework Discussion Forum takes place each month via MS Teams.

The topic for May’s forum meeting will be a Local transport Q&A (UK wide). We’ll be joined by Roger Tyers and Mike Benson from the Library’s Business and Transport team, and Iona Stewart from the Library’s Social and General Statistics team.

Book your place on Act.

The forum is complemented by a dedicated Teams chat which enables you to share ideas and best practice, with support being on hand from the Library should specialist knowledge be required.

You do not have to be a caseworker to attend these sessions – they are open to any Members’ staff who handle casework.

Becoming British: how migrants qualify for permanent residence and citizenship

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House of Commons Library Talk

Session outline

People who move to the UK can often make it their permanent home after a while by applying for indefinite leave to remain and then British citizenship. We’ll discuss how this works, how long it normally takes and recent announcements in this area from both the Labour government and Conservative opposition.

Time: 10:30 – 11:30
Date: 8 May 2025
Location: Online
Registration: https://parliament.learningpool.com/mod/facetoface/view.php?f=3477

Bank of England Briefing Session in Glasgow for Scottish MPs’ Staff

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The Bank of England would like to invite the staff of MPs based in Scotland to attend a briefing session on the work of the Bank on Tuesday 27 May from 11.00-13.00 at a venue in the centre of Glasgow.

Senior Bank staff will deliver a briefing on how the work of the Bank of England affects constituents, with an introduction to our work in Scotland from our Scottish Agency. With an interest rate decision on 8 May, this will be an ideal opportunity to learn more about the work of the Bank and ask your constituents’ questions.

If you would like to attend, please email ParliamentaryAffairs@bankofengland.co.uk to book a place in person.

We would be grateful if you could share this with any colleagues based in constituency offices in Glasgow and the surrounding area who may be interested in attending.

Please note this session is for staffers only. However, we hold regular briefing sessions for MPs to keep them up to date on the Bank’s policymaking. The next session for MPs will be held in the Bank of England’s London office on 24 April and Members are welcome to get in touch to learn more.

We look forward to welcoming you to the Bank of England. You can learn more about our Agent for Scotland here.

Access to cash and banking hubs

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House of Commons Library Talk

Session outline

Cash access, use and acceptance are declining. Recent legislation has tried to address the issues this causes for people reliant on cash. This talk will outline the law in this area and how caseworkers can help constituents with cash access requests.

Time: 10:30 – 11:30
Date: 24 April 2025
Location: Online
Registration: https://parliament.learningpool.com/mod/facetoface/view.php?id=7498

Practical recommendations for supporting staff in a political office

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By Jennifer Lees-Marshment
Professor of Political Management and Marketing at The University of Dundee

Wednesday April 2nd at 2pm

This workshop will present practical recommendations for supporting staff in political offices. These were created by interviewing political advisors who worked for Prime Ministers, Ministers and MPs in the UK, Canada, Australia and New Zealand about what they had found worked best within the realities of politics and government.

Participants will also get the opportunity to reflect on which recommendations they might consider implementing, and to share any additional practices they have found useful.

This will be of interest to existing and prospective staffers and special advisers, and those already support and manage colleagues, teams or offices or aspire to in the future.

Brief author intro
Jennifer Lees-Marshment is Professor of Political Marketing and Management at The University of Dundee and interviewed over 65 advisors who worked for Prime Ministers, Ministers and MPs in the UK, New Zealand, Australia and Canada to identify over 50 best practice recommendations for improving the support and management of political staffers.

To receive the Teams link to this session, please email mpsstaff-wwg@parliament.uk

Casework Discussion Forum: Home Office MP account management team

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Time: 10:30 – 11:30
Date: 8 April 2025
Location: Online via MS Teams

The Casework Discussion Forum takes place each month via MS Teams.

For the April 2025 forum we will be joined by staff from the Home Office MP account management team. The session will provide an overview of the Home Office MPAM team and a chance for the team to hear feedback from caseworkers.

Book your place on Act.

Accredited CPD courses 

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The Members and Members’ Staff Services Team are thrilled to announce the launch of accredited Continuing Professional Development(CPD) courses. CPD refers to any activity that encourages participants to learn new skills, knowledge or expertise that will help them progress in their chosen career. 

Further information is available on ParliNet.