My work experience with Bobby Dean
by Atharva Pawargi
I began by working with Sarah, a senior caseworker, who showed me the hundreds of unique cases she handles. This particular task really stood out to me, as the variety and severity of the cases were incredibly eye-opening. To add to my surprise, Sarah walked me through how she handles all the different types of cases, providing me with the rather memorable motto: Acknowledge, Assure, Re-assure. This forms the baseline of how she responds to casework; despite this clear structure, each specific email she sends varies drastically because the cases themselves are so different. What really stood out was her attention to detail; when I attempted to solve some of the cases, I regularly missed key details that should have formed the centre of my response. The work the case workers do is truly phenomenal and is just one example of how a local MP’s office can directly help those in their constituency.
On the second day of my work experience, Julie showed us how she sorted Bobby Dean’s seemingly endless inbox. This highlighted the sheer volume of messages the office receives and the amount of work required for each email to be responded to in a formal and timely manner. The different types of emails an MP’s office receives were also quite surprising, ranging from the dangers of ticks to formal press invitations. The organisation of emails was remarkable; Julie had categories for nearly all types of messages,no matter how niche, demonstrating the precise organisation the team achieves in order to best help their MP.
I then proceeded to identify local businesses and charities that Bobby Dean could meet with to further address the local public’s concerns. I shortlisted charities like oxfam as well as local organisations like RMNS. These decisions were based on Bobby’s interests; just that morning, he had spoken about local businesses and shops in the House of Commons, following the closure of Coughlans Bakery in Wallington due to rising economic pressures under the Labour Government. This task highlighted the importance of keeping the MP's interests at heart, as all of my plans had to be relevant to him to be effective.
On day three, I went to Parliament and visited the Lib Dem office in Westminster. Prior to this, I had created a Private Member's Bill with Chante, who helped me understand exactly how bills work. My bill was greatly influenced by my work with the Surrey Youth Commission, who tackle youth crime in Surrey. My specific bill focused on knife crime, as youth violence has increased year upon year. It is of great importance that young offenders and victims receive the help they need to either discourage counter-attacks or deter the use of violence against others. My bill also criticised the online sale of knives, as I deemed it to be incredibly unsafe for young people to have the ability to purchase weapons online.
Fortunately, I was given the opportunity to discuss my bill with Bobby himself, as well as having a more general discussion about the local area and politics. It was a fantastic conversation, especially because Bobby made me feel incredibly relaxed and heard. Hermione then showed me her job in Parliament and talked us through all the different types of campaign emails Bobby Dean receives, explaining how he and his team discuss and resolve issues in a way that is respectful yet firm. After a tour of Parliament, a viewing of the House of Commons, and a surprise spotting of Nigel Farage, I headed home with a memory to savour.
On the final day, Matt talked me through his work as the head of comms. He showed us his video ideas and plans, as well as how he sends information to different news channels for them to create their articles. This was incredibly interesting and gave me a "behind the scenes" snapshot of a press release. In contrast to this rather serious job, we had a good laugh at some of the leaflets Matt has created, including one in the form of a postcard. As a member of Gen Z, I spend a lot of time on social media, so after reviewing many of their different accounts, I gave Matt a list of tips on how to increase his views and following on Instagram and TikTok. This task was quite eye-opening, as I quickly realised that "flash over substance" videos on these apps might seem easier to execute, yet viewership for most MPs remains quite low. I finished the day by writing this article, interspersed with occasionally petting Julie’s dog.
All in all, this was a truly fantastic work experience. I not only came to understand how all the different jobs are carried out in the office, but I also got to take part in them myself. This week was truly special and has only caused my love for politics to grow.
