Memoranda from Members' staff
A MEMBER'S
SPOUSE (WHO
HAS ASKED
TO REMAIN
ANONYMOUS)
1. The accommodation in the House set aside
for families is not very good. For example there is no toilet
facility in the wash room/changing room. The Family Room is sometimes
used by Members, and by their staff (opening mail etc) and also
by Members being interviewed. I know that space is at a premium
in the House but I would ask if it is possible to provide a separate
room for this. Would it also be possible to provide a cloakroom
to accommodate visitors' coats and luggage? (I think the family
room is often used for this purpose.)
2. I wonder if it would be possible to look
at the rules regarding the Strangers dinning room, to allow spouses
to book a table for close family members (sons and daughters) when
the dining room is not busy. I believe this used to be the
case some time ago.
3. The toilets in the main building of the
House really need upgrading and require better and more frequent
cleaning.
JOY GREENFIELD
1. It seems to me that there are a significant
number of unused desks. Members with far flung constituencies
who are allocated desks but then don't use them should be approached
to consider releasing them to those Members who have most of their
staff working from the Palace of Westminster.
2. There is never enough desk space or filing
cabinets and to see rooms unused cannot be right.
METTE KJAERBY
1. I have only one point for your consideration:
A nursery on the Parliamentary estate for MPs and staff!
2. There is an urgent need for a nursery
at the Parliamentary estate. I believe that the time has come
for Parliament to have a nursery on site and be baby-friendly.
This would make it easier for staff to balance work, home and
social life. It would be of particular importance for many of
the Parliamentary mums who wish to continue breastfeeding their
children whilst working. Breastfeeding rates in the UK are to
be ashamed of.
3. Bottlefeeding cost the NHS aprox £12
million. Cases of gastro-enteritis treated by GPs cost the NHS
a further £6 million. Breastfed babies are rarely hospitalised
for gastro-enteritis.
4. I shall be very happy to give oral evidence
as a midwife, reproductive health expert and a mum.
MATTHEW KORRIS
Excellent Accommodation
1. I am personally very satisfied with the
office accommodation that I have been allocated. There is plenty
of space available in the two connecting rooms in Portcullis House
for my MP and her staff, with good storage facilities and decent
furniture.
"Room" for Improvement
2. Environmental—I believe
there is scope for much greater recycling from Members' offices.
The paper recycling system is good, but consideration should be
given to the possibilities of recycling plastic as well—there
is significant waste from food packaging and plastic items in
the mail. Any reconsideration of office space across the Parliamentary
Estate should take this into account.
3. Informal Areas—Portcullis
House was designed with informal areas on the 1st, 3rd and 5th
floors that offered seating, vending machines and copies of most
newspapers. These have been gradually removed, so that only the
one on the 1st floor remains. The 1st floor is available to the
public so it is often crowded, vending machines are emptied quickly,
and newspapers go missing. The informal areas were removed to
make way for more office space, which can be understood, but these
facilities are much missed by Members and staff, especially those
on higher floors. Some of these facilities could be accommodated
in the photocopier rooms (see below).
4. Photocopying Rooms—it is
very useful to have photocopying rooms in close proximity and
they are well equipped. However the rooms have lots of unused
space in them. I would suggest that they could be used to accommodate
some of the facilities that were lost when the informal areas
were converted into offices—they could certainly house newspapers
or vending machines.
KARI MAWHOOD
1. My main suggestion is that a cre"che/nursery
should be provided for children of Members, their staff and officers
of the House. This would promote excellent work-life balance and
would ensure that staff could return to work sooner, should they
chose to, safe in the knowledge that their children were close
by in case of emergency. It would also encourage longer breastfeeding
which is nutritionally advantageous to babies and helps build
up their immune systems.
2. In addition, I think it is extremely
important that MPs' staff should be located on the Estate which
enables MPs to better scrutinise legislation and contribute to
debates, because they have administrative and research expertise
close at hand.
3. In terms of furniture, in PCH the choice
is extremely limited—for example no square or rectangular
tables are included (apart from the member's desk). In square
offices, square tables are a better use of the space available.
Square meeting tables in offices would be useful and would alleviate
the demand on room bookings from Mondays to Thursdays.
4. Also, many offices store a lot more stationery
in cupboards since the stationery office downstairs is no longer
available, so there can be a shortage of cupboard space.
ANN PALMER
1. The offices are spacious in general terms,
but seriously over heated. The manual means of reducing the temperature
in the office inadequate as the range you personally control produces
no measurable reduction in the temperature. To have to call someone
to remove both carpets tiles & concrete floor tiles to rummage
under ones desk to try and turn down the heating seems a madness,
especially as again there is no measurable difference in the temperature
once this palaver has happened.
2. The door handles are awkward to manipulate
and have already fallen off.
3. The holes in the desks through which
cables run are too small for a plug to fit through, thus table
lamps cannot be moved beyond the range of the cable—really
irritating, (the plugs themselves are sealed, so no solution there).
4. Re furniture in room ***. There are two
very large awkward armchairs that serve no purpose at all other
than to take up space and be difficult to move. Simple upright
chairs with arms would be preferable for those taking part in
meetings.
5. The standard of cleaning is desperate
around the corridors and in the lavatories—the two bathrooms
behind the lift shaft (Derby Gate end) on the third floor have
to be experienced to be believed.
6. The shower cabinet in one leaks, so daily
(it is used by someone daily) one is wading across a wet floor,
in ones out door shoes, water plus dusty soles produce a muddy
floor. The small bin to hold wet paper hand towels overflows by
mid morning, so that one is confronted by a sea of wet paper to
add to the general unpleasantness.
6. Weeks go by when there is no loo paper
(despite requests), so the first task of a Monday morning is to
search the other loos for spare rolls. Why whoever empties the
bins each day is not tasked with replacing loo rolls is beyond
understanding, as despite requests of cleaning ladies around the
place, one is told this is not their responsibility.
7. The kitchenette area has improved of
late, with less gunge being allowed to fester for weeks. Though
a bug count by the Health & Safety police would no doubt produce
levels worthy of the Guinness Book of Records.
8. Presumably the Accommodation Committee
is not responsible for the inadequate reception in Portcullis
for mobile phones. There is only one spot in rooms *** where it
is possible on a good day to get a signal strong enough to take
a call.
9. Other than the above the accommodation
is fine and a huge improvement on having to hot desk in Parliament
Street!
JOHN SLINGER
1. I work in Room ***, North Curtain Corridor.
I cycle over seven miles to work each day. I am concerned that
there are no shower facilities available for Members' staff in
the Palace itself (I know there are facilities in Portcullis House,
but this is too far to go at the beginning of the day with shower
kit, etc).
2. Two of my colleagues in this office also
cycle to work.
3. In the context of the ever increasing
numbers of Members' staff cycling/running to work (which should
be encouraged), I would respectfully recommend the following:
— That shower facilities are provided
in each of the main working areas of the Palace (so that they
are easily accessible within 2-5 minutes walking).
— That there is a "drying"
room (it needn't be large) to dry wet clothes in poor weather
conditions.
4. The provision of locker space (not in
the Member's office) for storage of personal belongings as in
most places of work.
REBECCA SMITH
We face a lack of paper storage and file space.
Each member is provided with one cupboard in which to store files
and stationary, and one set of shelves which are difficult to
reach. Compared to colleagues working in other parts of the Parliamentary
estate, we feel that we are slightly disadvantaged with the amount
of storage space provided. Compared to rooms in Portcullis House
which have significantly more shelf and cupboard space, we certainly
have to be much more imaginative in how we organise things.
BARBARA STEVENS
1. I regret that the Committee did not walk
round the whole of the secretaries' area and missed giving the
opportunity for a number of other staff working in the area to
talk to members and to hear their views and ideas. My desk is
at the end nearest to the ladies toilets and the kitchen.
2. Lighting is a problem and all of us find
the continual gloom tedious, not knowing whether it is day or
night, rain or shine. Could not the side offices be opened up
to let in more daylight? A modernisation plan of the area to provide
more light and brighter surroundings would be welcome—there
is too much brown at the moment.
3. We do like the comradeship of the area
and none of us is keen to be isolated and shut away in a closed
office with no contact outside its four walls. However, to lessen
noise and disruption from other colleagues around us, it would
be preferable to have only two people in an "alcove"
instead of the present three.
4. It would also be preferable if the MPs
for whom we work could have their offices closer to ours—mine,
for instance, is miles away up on the 3rd floor, which does not
make for the most efficient working relationship.
5. It is inconvenient for the last post
on a Friday or during recess to be at 5 pm in our area. Can this
be revised to 6 pm to fit in with working patterns of many of
us who continue to be busy during these periods? Postmen collecting
in this area say this is quite possible with little disruption
to their rounds.
6. The photocopiers, although much improved
during the past months, are now beginning to show wear and tear
again. New ones would lessen frustration and time wasted in trying
to find the most reliable of the machines to use. One colour photocopier
in the area would also be helpful.
7. Collection of confidential waste is utterly
inefficient. It took two weeks for one bag to be collected from
my desk just recently and this is a recurring problem.
8. The kitchen—this is a disgrace.
It appears to be no-one's responsibility to keep it clean, ie
wash the fridges or cupboards inside and out. The only way the
fridges received attention recently was when the electricity gave
out, the ice box was completely iced up, and they de-frosted as
a result until the electricity supply was restored. Teacloths
could be changed more frequently and the supply of paper towels
kept up regularly. There also appears to be a problem with the
provision of washing-up liquid. A washing up brush would be helpful
and none has been forthcoming despite a request about one year
ago. There is also a problem with china and cutlery from the canteen
being dumped in the kitchen and left there, sometimes unwashed,
for a considerable length of time.
9. The ladies toilets could be modernised
and brightened up. The toilets themselves do not flush efficiently,
the taps often stick so cannot be turned on or off and some of
the locks on the doors do not work because the lock is out of
alignment. This has already been reported. I think the floor needs
to be thoroughly cleaned, not just a mop dragged over it.
10. It would also be helpful to have up-to-date
London residential and business telephone directories in both
sides of the area.
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