Ambreen our poliical liaison volunteer tells us about her experience working with Women and Children First.
I've been volunteering at Woman and Children First since September. I work as a political liaison volunteer which involves contacting Members of Parliament to raise awareness of the charity and the issues it deals with. The hope is that increased awareness amongst parliamentarians about the need to improve maternal health will have a positive impact on the UK’s international development policy – and will ultimately help improve child and maternal health in less-developed countries.
I studied International Politics and Economics, so volunteering here is really helping to build on the theory from my course. I'm building on my knowledge about the processes of parliament all the time - for example, how to engage MPs according to their interests and the differences between engaging with the House of Commons and the House of Lords. Although of course MPs are really busy, I've been pleasantly surprised about how down-to-earth they are and how willing they are to talk about areas of interest. I also arranged a meeting with my constituency MP, who was very helpful and offered some really useful tips about the best ways to approach public office holders.
Women and Children First is a great place to work. Everyone has been really friendly and welcoming and I learn something new from everyone. Career-wise, I hope to work in a public policy or socio-economic related role so the experience I'm gaining here is very useful in building towards that goal. I'm joining up more of the dots all the time. And of course WCF is a great charity and cause I believe in, so I hope something positive can come out of my contribution.
