My Journey With The Peer Support Circles, by Anabel Butler
I have a theory, (I doubt its actually MY theory), but I believe that in order for new opportunities to enter your life there has to be room for them. So, I did a newsletter spring clean and unsubscribed from all the emails I continuously ignore. I have to say it was hard to admit to myself which ‘worthy causes’ were no longer ones that motivated me.
Low and behold, one day something arrived in my inbox that truly excited me. “Did I want to start my journey to political office?”. I was blown away. I felt like it was the universe speaking to me.
Growing up I had always wanted to be Prime Minister, it’s why I decided to study law at university, seeing that this was a popular choice for MPs. At high school I had unsuccessfully stood to be a Member of Youth Parliament and on my gap year I joined the Lib Dems, going leafleting on weekends and attempting to run for councillor. And there died the dream.
The invitation to kickstart it was perfectly timed. Like a lot of people during the pandemic my news consumption had rocketed, and I was having daily arguments with the TV. Even my mum said to me, ‘well why don’t you do something about it?’.
Taking part in the Peer Support Circles helped me reflect on what to do about this frustration. Yes I was incensed by the treatment of the most vulnerable in society and by the fact that the Government wasn’t engaging with or listening to its citizens. But what is my political goal? This is something we touched on in week 1 and a question I hadn’t asked myself before. With guidance, I was able to set myself a small achievable goal: investigate and join a political movement and speak at one event before Easter 2021.
The Peer Support Circles also provided access to interviews with Women MPs, MSPs and Councillors from across the political spectrum. Listening to Claire Miller, Scottish Greens Councillor for Edinburgh City Centre talk about working with a team of people to run her campaign, I realised that it was possible to volunteer to support a potential candidate. This seemed like a great idea to gain experience and maybe find a mentor!
But which party? In my third week, I was fortunate enough to connect with a member of Women’s Equality Party whilst attending training on Digital Security organised by Glitch. This meeting feels like fate now. Afterwards I looked at the WEP website and something clicked, and I immediately signed up to be a volunteer.
The weekly “loveworks” set by the Parliament Project team leading the Peer Support Circles continued to push me to probe deeper into my fantasy of getting into politics. I was asked to write and get feedback from my circle on “my story” (what motivates me, how my experiences have informed me, what difference I want to make etc.) This made me realise that I wasn’t ready to take centre stage yet. I wasn’t ready to be so vulnerable with people. I realised that I couldn’t see myself standing for a councillor election where I grew up.
Now that I’ve completed the Peer Support Circle course, I can’t say I have spoken at an event, maybe that was slightly too ambitious, but I have signed up to be a Digital Organiser with WEP and to do voter phone banking for this year’s local elections. Without the Peer Support Circles I would never have made the leap between leisurely contemplating whether or not a life in politics was for me, to actually getting involved with a party and being an activist. If this leads to something more one day, we’ll see.
I have to say one of the best things about the Peer Support Circles was connecting with other women. We shared our stories about struggling to be heard, always saying sorry, and doubting our capabilities. I felt lifted up their supportive feedback and learnt from their experience. Also, we laughed. We laughed so much!
Peer Support Circles are excellently tailored so that newbies like me as well as more experienced women can get something from the experience. I would encourage you to join if you want to engage in some self-reflection and meet some great people!