In what has been a pretty bad week for parliamentary democracy, it was rather more inspiring to be able to visit pupils at May Park Primary School as part of UK Parliament Week. The school elects “Values Ambassadors” each year, who represent the other children on the issues they care about, and we spoke about the upcoming elections for those posts.

I told them why it is important to have a strong sense of public service and answered a wide range of questions, covering issues like climate change, the challenges of being involved in politics, green buses and how I became an MP.

I also sent messages of support to several schools and girl guides troops in Bristol East that are taking part in Parliament Week activities. It’s crucial for young people to learn about our democracy and how politics works; I just hope this past week hasn’t put them off for good!

Take a look at the UK Parliament Week website and get inspired to sign up for 2022.