EAST Hampshire MP Damian Hinds has given a talk to students at Alton College about how his work as an MP ties in with his office as Secretary of State for Education.

Students studying law, politics and history were joined for the occasion by pupils from Amery Hill and Eggar’s schools as Mr Hinds chatted to them about a day in the life of an MP.

According to an Alton College spokesman, Mr Hinds told his audience about the range of activities he undertakes on a daily basis, including casework, correspondence, campaigns, legislation, gathering views, questions and debates. And he discussed his constituency, some of the issues that are raised by the people he represents including immigration, the NHS and education, and he talked about his path to becoming an MP.

This was followed by an opportunity to ask questions, the first being: ‘What is the Department for Education doing to make employers aware of the new grading system for GCSEs?’ Students were particularly concerned that the change from the letter grading system to numerical grading had not fully been explained to the wider working community and they were anxious that this might jeopardise their route into employment.

In response, Mr Hinds explained that the government has planned an awareness campaign for employers about the change and that it was a positive thing as it removed the ‘tolerance’ levels from the old grades to include a more specific grade range. Under the new system, he believed pupils would be getting a more accurate representation of their ability rather than a more general grade.

Speaking after the event, Mr Hinds told the Herald: “It was a pleasure to be back at Alton College last week talking with students about politics, democracy and the privilege of representing East Hampshire in Parliament.

“I’m aware that many of the rules and protocols that govern procedures in Parliament can seem arcane, and I hope that by sharing information on this can help people to understand more about our system of democracy, and why it’s important for people to get involved, both at a local and national level.”