Empowered to Lead: Students Meet MP Uma Kumaran
MP for Stratford and Bow, Uma Kumaran, recently visited CFGS to meet with a group of KS3 Social Studies students and Year 10 and 12 Citizenship and Politics students. Year 7 and 8 students spoke directly to Uma about their belief that all children have the right to an education, even in communities affected by natural disasters or conflict. Students had been working on the Send My Friend to School campaign during Social Studies lessons and they used this opportunity to lobby Uma and request that she raise the issue of children’s rights to an education in Parliament.
Uma then addressed the Year 10 and year 12 students and gave them an opportunity to ask questions. Here, Aisha from 12RCE relays her account:
"On the 24th of April, I had the pleasure of meeting Labour MP, Uma Kumaran. It was amazing to have the opportunity to ask various questions which ranged from her life as a politician to challenging and controversial questions about policy and the role of an MP.
It was inspiring to hear a young female MP speak passionately about politics, an area many women are shut out of, but her dedication and sincerity provided us with determination to achieve our goals and overcome setbacks. She answered challenging questions with authenticity, which was admirable as it demonstrated the connection between a representative and her constituents.
Interestingly, she mentioned her visit to Palestine in response to how she balances the weight of representation and the demands of policy making. She talked about how there are always differences within a party - like a family - but through hard work a consensus is reached.
Overall, this visit was an incredible opportunity to expand our knowledge of the political world in terms of how it works, an MP's busy schedule and also the challenge of making difficult decisions. Uma showed young women, such as ourselves, to never doubt ourselves and work hard to achieve our goals no matter how many barriers, failures or how long it takes!"
