Kiama Electorate Student Leaders Forum

On Wednesday, 10 May, Mr and Mrs Bray took Noah and I up to the Parliament of New south Wales in Sydney by train.

We spent a day with other school leaders from our electorate. Gareth Ward, Member for Kiama, led the day, giving us a tour of the Parliament from top to bottom. He spoke about the history of our government and told us about some of the interesting traditions that are present in our government even today. These include the lower house being green to represent the ‘village green’ that the people would meet on in different parts of England before any buildings were constructed.

We witnessed the upper house in action. Sitting at the same level made us feel like we were really a part of it as we could see their faces in detail and hear the booming, “All in favor say aye, I think the ayes have it, the ayes have it!”

After walking up and down the never-ending staircases, Mr Ward gave us a chance to hear from various members of parliament, including our Premier. We were able to ask them any pressing questions we had, such as what is being done about house prices in New South Wales?

After lunch we ventured to the Lower House viewing gallery to witness Question Time. We then headed home on the train.

Overall the day was very interesting and gave us valuable insights into how our government works. It changed our state government from being a thing that is ‘far away’ to something quite accessible, helping us to understand that even we can make a difference.

Rachel Hill

School Prefect 2017