Watch the highlights from our Have I Got Fake News For You event in parliament, featuring Cathy Newman, Sophia Smith Galer and students from Caterham High School.

Our Vision

The All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Political and Media Literacy provides a vital, cross-party forum in Westminster dedicated to securing a future where all young people have access to Political and Media Literacy, empowering them to become informed, active citizens resilient to misinformation.

We advocate that foundational Political and Media Literacy education is crucial to the success of the enfranchisement of 16 and 17 year-olds. Neither policy can succeed without the robust implementation of the other.

The APPG’s mission: to drive policy change, strengthen curriculum requirements, and advocate for crucial teacher training, is grounded in the research and practice of its secretariat, Shout Out UK.

Our Policy Aims

Gaps in the provision of Political and Media Literacy education must be urgently addressed well before the next General Election and the proposed 2028 reforms to the schools’ curriculum.

Key Recommendations

  • Curriculum Reform: Political and Media Literacy must be a distinct, foundational subject in the national curriculum that returns to the basics of civic education and core democratic concepts. It must also be embedded consistently across other disciplines.
  • Invest in Teachers: Implement widespread, sustained investment in comprehensive teacher training (ITT and CPD) for educators across all Key Stages, addressing the lack of expertise highlighted by The Missing Link report.
  • Secure Long-Term Funding: Shift away from short-term, prescriptive funding towards long-term investment in foundational Political and Media Literacy education initiatives to ensure democratic resilience.
  • Policy Cohesion: Establish formal collaboration between government departments to create a cohesive national policy framework. OFSTED should monitor school engagement with Political and Media Literacy.
  • Evidence and Implementation: Commission large-scale UK studies or fund re-entry to the ICCS to inform policy. Implementation of Votes at 16 requires automatic voter registration (e.g. at NI number issuance) and a review of Voter ID policies to ensure accessibility for young people. Political parties must actively engage young people as democratic actors.

The Missing Link Report

In 2021, Shout Out UK and Dr James Weinberg released a report titled ‘The Missing Link’, which examined the state of democratic education (i.e. the teaching of politics and political literacy in all forms) in English schools. The report concludes that democratic education exists as a peripheral feature of secondary education in England and is being delivered by non-specialists who neither feel prepared to teach it nor favour appropriate pedagogic practices.

Read the report here

Read our Policy Briefs here

The Hate EconomyVotes at 16Back to Basics
Civic Optimism

Officers and Members

Matt Bishop MP

Matt Bishop MP

Co-Chair

Lord Iain McNicol

Lord Iain McNicol

Co-Chair

Lord David Blunkett

Lord David Blunkett

Honorary Vice-Chair

Lord Andrew Lansley

Lord Andrew Lansley

Vice-Chair

Kirsty Blackman MP

Vice Chair

Members

  • Jess Asato MP
  • Lord Bird
  • Matt Bishop MP
  • Phil Brickell MP
  • Irene Campbell MP
  • Ellie Chowns MP
  • Lord Clement Jones
  • Mims Davies MP
  • Neil Duncan-Jordan MP
  • Maya Ellis MP
  • Kirith Entwistle MP
  • Allison Gardner MP
  • Monica Harding MP
  • Claire Hazelgrove MP
  • Jonathan Hinder MP
  • Baroness Beverley Hughes
  • Ruth Jones MP
  • Lord Knight
  • Uma Kumaran MP
  • Seamus Logan MP
  • Kevin McKenna MP
  • Julie Minns MP
  • Yasin Mohammad MP
  • Baroness Estelle Morris
  • Darren Paffey MP
  • Gregor Poynton MP
  • Lord Rennard
  • Bell Ribeiro-Addy MP
  • John Slinger MP
  • Baroness Carmen Smith of Llanfaes

Academic Advisory Group

Dr James Weinberg

Dr James Weinberg

Chair of the AAG
University of Sheffield

  • Dr Rebecca Baker, University of Exeter
  • Dr Marina Cino Pagliarello, London School of Economics
  • Dr Steve Connolly, Anglia Ruskin University
  • Dr Jan Eichhorn, University of Edinburgh
  • Professor Julie Firmstone, University of Leeds
  • Dr Richard Fletcher, University of Oxford
  • Prof. Matthew Flinders, Sheffield University
  • Dr Jan Germen Janmaat, University College London
  • Prof. Rachel Gibson, University of Manchester
  • Dr Victoria Goodyear, University of Birmingham
  • Dr Natalie-Anne Hall, Cardiff University
  • Prof Helen Haste, University of Bath
  • Professor Arlene Holmes-Henderson, Durham University
  • Professor Bryony Hoskins, University of Roehampton
  • Dr Christine Huebner, Nottingham Trent University
  • Dr Helen Innes, Cardiff University
  • Prof. Toby James, University of East Anglia
  • Dr Lee Jerome, Middlesex University London
  • Prof Cristina Leston Bandeira, University of Leeds
  • Dr. Cormac Mac Amhlaigh, University of Edinburgh
  • Dr Thalia Magioglou, University of Westminster
  • Prof Julian McDougall, Bournemouth University
  • Dr Andrew Mycock, University of Huddersfield
  • Prof Anja Neundorf, University of Glasgow
  • Dr Sandra Obradović, The Open University
  • Professor Ruth Page, University of Birmingham
  • Dr Chris Pich, University of Nottingham
  • Dr Gianfranco Polizzi, University of Birmingham
  • Dr Deborah Ralls, The University of Newcastle
  • Dr Kaitlyn Regehr, University College London
  • Dr Edda Sant, Manchester Metropolitan University
  • Dr Corey Savage, University of Glasgow
  • Prof. James Sloam, Royal Holloway, University of London
  • Prof. Angie Wilson, Political Studies Association (PSA)
  • Dr Frances Yeoman, Liverpool John Moores University

House of Commons & Lords Members

  1. Allison Gardner MP
  2. Baroness Beverley Hughes
  3. Baroness Estelle Morris
  4. Claire Hazelgrove MP
  5. Darren Paffey MP
  6. Ellie Chowns MP
  7. Irene Campbell MP
  8. Jess Asato MP
  9. Jonathan Hinder MP
  10. Julie Minns MP
  11. Kirith Entwistle MP
  12. Lord Bird
  13. Lord Clement Jones
  14. Lord Knight
  15. Maya Ellis MP
  16. Monica Harding MP
  17. Neil Duncan-Jordan MP
  18. Phil Brickell MP
  19. Ruth Jones MP
  20. Sharon Hodgson MP
  21. Uma Kumaran MP
  22. Dave Robertson MP
  23. John Slinger MP
  24. Gregor Poynton MP
  25. Baroness Carmen Smith of Llanfaes

Academic Advisory Group

  1. Dr. James Weinberg, AAG chair
  2. Prof. Matthew Flinders, Sheffield University - Principal Special Adviser
  3. Prof. Toby James, University of East Anglia - Fellow on Electoral Registration and Administration
  4. Dr Andrew Mycock, University of Huddersfield, Trustee of the Political Studies Association
  5. Prof. Angie Wilson, President of Political Studies Association (PSA)
  6. Prof. Rachel Gibson, Professor of Political Science at the University of Manchester
  7. Dr Marina Cino Pagliarello, London School of Economics and Research Director for the project ‘Civic Education and Populism’/89Initiative
  8. Prof. James Sloam, Royal Holloway, University of London
  9. Dr. Cormac Mac Amhlaigh, Senior Lecturer in Public Law at the University of Edinburgh Political Studies Association (PSA)
  10. Dr Arlene Holmes-Henderson, Senior Research Fellow, Speaking Citizens project, University of Sussex
  11. Dr Christine Huebner, Nottingham Trent University, Political Studies Association Young People’s Politics Specialist Group
  12. Dr Edda Sant, Manchester Metropolitan University
  13. Professor Bryony Hoskins, University of Roehampton
  14. Dr Jan Eichhorn, Senior Lecturer in Social Policy, University of Edinburgh & d|part
  15. Dr Deborah Ralls, Leverhulme Early Career Research Fellow, School of Education, Communication and Language Sciences. The University of Newcastle.
  16. Dr Sandra Obradović, Senior Lecturer in Psychology, The Open University
  17. Dr Richard Fletcher, Director of Research, The Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism at the University of Oxford
  18. Dr Corey Savage, Lecturer in Education, University of Glasgow
  19. Prof Anja Neundorf, Professor of Politics and Research Methods, University of Glasgow
  20. Prof Cristina Leston Bandeira, Professor of Politics, University of Leeds
  21. Prof Helen Haste, University of Bath
  22. Dr Jan Germen Janmaat, Professor of Political Socialization, University College London
  23. Dr Lee Jerome, Professor in Education, Middlesex University London
  24. Dr Rebecca Baker, Associate Lecturer in Politics and International Relations, University of Exeter
  25. Dr Thalia Magioglou, Senior Lecturer in Psychology, University of Westminster
  26. Prof Julian McDougall, Professor in Media and Education, Bournemouth University
  27. Dr Steve Connolly, Deputy Head of the School of Education, Anglia Ruskin University
  28. Dr Helen Innes, Crime and Security Research Institute, Cardiff University
  29. Dr Kaitlyn Regehr, Associate Professor and the Programme Director of Digital Humanities, University College London
  30. Dr Frances Yeoman, Liverpool John Moores University
  31. Dr Victoria Goodyear, an Associate Professor in Pedagogy in Sport, Physical Activity and Health from the University of Birmingham
  32. Professor Julie Firmstone, Professor of Journalism and Political Communication, University of Leeds
  33. Dr Chris Pich, University of Nottingham
  34. Gianfranco Polizzi, University of Birmingham

Disclaimer:

This is not an official website [or feed] of the House of Commons or the House of Lords. It has not been approved by either House or its committees. All-Party Parliamentary Groups are informal groups of Members of both Houses with a common interest in particular issues. The views expressed in these webpages are those of the group.