How to get to The House of Lords in London
The House of Lords is one of most important and active chambers in the Parliament of the UK. This chamber conducts various activities that are related to the public life. Therefore, general public is also welcome to visit the House of Lords. During this tour, visitors can not only roam around in different sections of the Parliament building, but they will also get to see business in the chamber of the Lords from the galleries. However, visitors are not allowed to take part in any discussion or debate that is going on in the Lords chamber. Aside from that, visitors will also get to watch the proceedings of small committees. Those who are enticed by this tour of House of Lords can gain further information regarding the tours of this chamber from this article.
Visit: House of Lords Website
Instructions
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Overlook Debates from the Chamber:
General public is welcome to sit and observe the debates from the gallery in the chamber of the House of Lords. People can watch these debates in the chamber of the House of Lords between Monday and Thursday. Visitors should keep one thing in mind that they should give themselves plenty of time in order to get through the security staff because long queues are often observed outside the House of Lords, especially when high profile speeches take place. So it is suggested that one should plan his or her visit to the House of Lords. The two main ways to get entry inside the chamber are:
Obtain tickets beforehand: Public can get tickets in advance by requesting members of the House of Lords, as they are allocated small number of entry tickets. So contact a member today and request a ticket.
Stand in the Queue on the day: The second way around is to stand in the queue on the day a person wants to watch the debate from the chamber at the Cromwell Green, which is the dedicated entrance to the building for visitors. These queues open up an hour before the House of Lords proceedings commence. -
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Watch Lords select committees at work:
The visitors will get to see proceedings of various committees, which meet in any case once in a week in order to work out specific issues. Visitors are welcome at the evidence sessions as well but only on first come first serve basis. -
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Tours of the House of Lords:
People are also allowed to tour the House of Lords, which is obviously organized. During this tour, people will get to see some special places like Royal Gallery, Robing Room, the chamber and Peers’ Lobby. The tour of the House of Lords is divided into three categories, which are:
Member tours: This tour is free of charge and takes place only on weekdays. People who are interested in this type of tour can reserve their tickets in advance by getting in touch with a member of the House of Lords. This facility is only available for the residents of the United Kingdom.
Saturday tours: Visitors need to buy the tickets of this tour and it takes place mostly on Saturdays from 9:15 am till 4:30 pm. Tickets are available for purchase both in advance and on the day.
Summer tours: This tour takes place in summers between August and September, 6 days a week. Check the tour bookings and ticket prices. -
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Visit Parliamentary Archives:
The Parliamentary Archives are also open for visit of the general public who are looking to conduct some sort of research work, as this section has archives that date back to 1497. However, in order to visit this section of the House of Lords make contact with the Parliamentary Archives in order to organise a visit. -
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Further information:
For further knowledge take a virtual tour of the House of Lords.
