For this project, we were given the task to find out how we might innovate the office of an MP, with the goal to widen democracy and make political power feel closer to residents.

Background:

Bristol North-West is one of the most unequal constituencies in the entire UK, with political engagement having just as stark a contrast compared with wealth.

The process:

To explore this topic, we carried out both qualitative and quantitative research, speaking to academic experts and a political secretary in Finland. In our research, we found that most barriers to political engagement are kindled by being ill-informed and poorly educated about how the political process works, which can feed further distrust and disengagement in politicians.

As a solution to this issue, we proposed ‘Coming of Age’ which is a civic education scheme for Personal Social Health and Economic Education (PSHE) lessons in schools. In this scheme of work, young people would learn about how our political system works, where they fit into it and how far their voice can go.

It is our hope that educating children before they become legal to vote at the age of 18, that this knowledge would impact them for the rest of their lives and also have an impact on older generations.

Grade: 1st (78)