Dr Amanda Heslegrave: My Week in Westminster at the Royal Society Pairing Scheme 2023

Dr Amanda Heslegrave (UK DRI at UCL) runs the UK DRI Biomarker Factory alongside Prof Henrik Zetterberg. Dr Heslegrave took part in the Royal Society Pairing Scheme 2023, a fantastic opportunity to gain first-hand experience of the inner workings of parliament and insight into how policy is shaped. Here, she shares how her week in Westminster went.

I successfully gained a place on this scheme and was paired with a ‘fast track’ civil servant working at The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA). On the Sunday night we checked into the Strand Palace Hotel – a huge hotel – each floor a maze and a test of navigational abilities. I somehow found my room!

Next was dinner at a nearby wine bar, where 30 of us plus three members of Royal Society staff got to know each other a bit. On my table we had vaccines, the effect of climate change on coastal environments, nursing and diabetes, applied statistics in management, antibiotic scaffolds and more – too many disciplines to remember.

Monday was spent at the Royal Society – a beautiful building and what a privilege to get a tour to see the original charter with so many famous signatures, from Isaac Newton and Charles Darwin to Stephen Hawking, via Queen Victoria. Though the first women scientists to be inducted were not until page 105, in 1945 – only took nearly 300 years. I shall remember that when I feel like my career is progressing slowly!

We heard some really interesting talks on ‘Policy & Science’, ‘Science in the Media’, and my favourite: ‘How Parliament and Government Work’. Next was a parliamentary reception in the Palace of Westminster, with members of parliament speaking and the Director of the Royal Society. There was lots of mingling, where I feel I might have secured some collaboration.

I spent Tuesday morning in the offices at DEFRA, where my pair introduced me to three of her colleagues who told me about projects they have been involved in. One was about grants for innovation in farming, another surveilling wastewater for viruses – really interesting stuff! We then had another afternoon conference run by the Government Office for Science (GO Science), where I learned about engaging with policymakers in science.

Wednesday was the last day (a week in Westminster is very short right now due to inflation, or trains strikes, which is also a bit about inflation isn’t it). First, I met my pair at Queen Square so I could show her my lab and tell her what we do – sadly the labs were almost empty due to AD/PD (the International Conference on Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s Diseases)! I certainly enjoyed explaining what we do and why it is important.

Then back to Parliament – House of Lords this time, where a mock Select Committee session would be held. We all squashed into a pretty small room with a horseshoe shaped table. Around the outside were the 10 members of our group who had been chosen to ask the questions, and at the end were three politicians who had volunteered to answer them – the subject was how you would reform scientific policy if you were doing it from scratch. Lots of interesting conversations about education from the earliest years – keeping talent in this country, postdoc contracts and more – we could have gone on all night but like all good things, it had to come to an end.

In summary it was a great week (Inflation, remember!) and I feel really lucky to have been able to take part, so if you see the call, apply! Even just seeing how much science is around us that we never even think about was good for me – also explaining many times what you do sets you in such good stead for all those lay summaries!

Thank you to Dr Heslegrave for sharing her experience. To find out how you can get involved with the scheme in future, visit the Royal Society website or contact UK DRI Public Affairs Manager Olivia Marshall.

Article published: 18 April 2023
Image credits: Dr Amanda Heslegrave