On the 15th April, we handed in our longstanding climate education petition into Downing Street. It was a fantastic and impactful day, bringing together young people from across the UK in support of seeing a more integrated climate education, but it was also the result of a lot of hard work and logistical planning that a lot of people wouldn’t have seen.
We launched our petition in early 2021 and have been collecting signatures through our campaigning since then. Last year, we decided that we wanted the Government to act on our demands, and so started planning our hand in.
It is absolutely vital that young people’s voices are heard in national politics, and organising a petition hand in for an issue important to you is an excellent way to build profile and momentum, so here are Teach the Future’s top tips for organising a hand in of your own!
Hope for the best, but prepare to be flexible. No matter how organised your campaign may be, things in Westminster are complex, dynamic and changeable. Be prepared for last minute cancellations, date, and time changes. Our slot was moved twice before finally going ahead, and despite confirming 5 MPs from across parties to attend our hand in with us, sadly none could attend due to voting! At the end of the day, these things are out of your control, so don’t let them derail your plans. Always get flexible train tickets for petitioners travelling into London where possible, to prevent any large financial losses if your slot needs to be moved.
Bring some campaign placards! Despite what is said online, you can generally bring placards into Downing Street. As long as nothing on them can be deemed derogatory or offensive, security are more than happy to let you take signs, as well as your petition box, in for photographs - it’s a great photo opportunity for your cause!
Plan your comms! You have (at most) 20 minutes in Downing Street, so prepare in advance for any photos you want to take. Up to 6 people are allowed into Downing Street. The police officer escorting you will be able to help take photos for you, but it’s important to plan what comms material you want to get out of your hand in, ahead of time. It’s also good to keep your supporters up-to-date ahead of the hand in, on the day and afterwards.
Ensure you have a return address (either email or postal) on your petition so that the Prime Minister can respond! We had ours on the final sheet of signatures and a front cover giving a petition overview. Don’t be expecting a quick response though, we are still waiting for ours!
Be prepared to talk to the public about your issue. As Downing Street is quite a busy attraction, there is a good chance that there will be tourists waiting outside, who may be curious to what you’re doing and what you’re campaigning for, we even had some French students ask to sign our petition before we went in!
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