Home >
Visits to Parliament
Tour times
David is always happy to sponsor trips by constituents to the House of Commons and meet them. Please ring David's Westminster office on 0207 219 8413 or e-mail to set up a visit to Parliament. It would be helpful if you gave as much notice as you can to increase the chances of gaining a place on a particular day. Tours are free and are available at these times:
Mondays
09.30 to 12 Noon, full tours
Tuesdays
09.00 to 09.20, full tours
09.25 to 12 Noon, partial tours (Lords only)
Wednesdays
09.00 to 09.20, full tours
09.25 to 12 Noon, partial tours (Lords only)
Thursdays
No tours
Fridays
15.30 to 17.00, full tours
Tours last about an hour and you can visit the Jubilee café off Westminster Hall afterwards. It serves sandwiches, snacks and refreshments and is very good value for central London.
Unfortunately, parties will not be able to meet David on Mondays or Fridays in Westminster as he is working in the constituency.
Gallery tickets
Gallery tickets enable you to enter the House of Commons Gallery between 11:30-12:00pm (2:30-3:00 on Mondays) at the start of Departmental Questions. They cannot be used at other parts of the day.
If you would like to visit Prime Minister's Questions, please be aware that David is only allocated four pairs of such tickets a year and demand is very heavy. David’s office will usually need over a month's notice to reserve PMQ tickets and even then they cannot be guaranteed. We will often only find out if our application has been successful on the day itself. However, there is a much higher chance of successfully acquiring non-Wednesday tickets for the daily sessions of Question Time at 12:30pm. If you go to departmental questions you can still see the Secretary of State being put on the spot. Further information is available at http://www.parliament.uk/visiting/visiting.cfm
David can also book tickets for the House of Lords for groups of up to 12 people. Lord’s Questions, the most topical and interesting section, starts at 2:30pm on Mon, Tue, Wed and 11:00am on Thursdays.
Big Ben tours
These are available for groups of up to eight people and start at 10:30, 11:30 and 2:30pm, lasting an hour. There are 334 steps to climb the clock tower; children under 14 are not allowed. There is no lift, therefore visitors should feel confident about making the climb and descent.
Directions
Visitors coming to Parliament for a tour should meet their tour guide at Sovereign's Entrance beneath Victoria Tower. Visitors to the Gallery should go to Central Lobby via St Stephen's Entrance, which is at the centre of the Palace of Westminster, opposite the east end of Westminster Abbey.
Nearest Underground Station - Westminster.
Buses - 3, 11, 12, 24, 53, 77A, 88, 109, 159, 184 and 511.
You can access a map of Westminster at: http://www.parliament.uk/commons/lib/colmap.pdf
Car parking
Car parking is not available for visitors; there is, however, a NCP car park (fee) off Abingdon Street (near Victoria Tower). This is often full and, as meter parking around Westminster is scarce and expensive, visitors are advised to travel by public transport.
Last but not least
A room can be booked for your group to meet David during your visit to Parliament. Education sheets about Parliament, Elections and how to make laws are also available. Please advise if you will need disability-based access.
Contact
Please contact Alex Scott, parliamentary assistant to David Heath MP:
Fax: 020 7219 5939
Alex Scott
David Heath MP's office
House of Commons
London
SW1A 0AA
Tel: 020 7219 2271
Arrangements during the summer recess
Over the summer recess, from mid July to early September, tours will be run by a company called Firstcall. Details are as follows.
Times: every few minutes from 9.15am to 4.30 pm.
Prices: Adults £7.00, Concessions £3.50 (students, anyone over 60 or under 18), Family ticket £16.00 (party of four, including two children under 16) Admission is free for children 4yrs and under, and for those assisting disabled people. There is a small surcharge for foreign language tours, as follows: adults £2.00; concessions £2.00; family tickets £8.00.
Tours last 75 minutes. Accompanied by expert Blue Badge Guides, they are wheelchair accessible and available in English, French, Spanish, German and Italian.
To book tickets, contact Firstcall on 0870 906 3773 or www.firstcalltickets.com.
From mid July onwards, tickets can also be bought from the ticket office at Parliament.
Please note that since the Commons does not sit during the summer recess, gallery tickets will not be available and David will be working in the constituency rather than in London.