Darren's day at Westminster takes in surprise trip to No.10

After picking up the award for 'Most Inspirational Colleague' at the UK Housing Awards last November, Guinness Northern Counties' Darren Wilkinson was invited to spend the day with Housing Minister, John Healey in his government department, but little did he know how exciting the day would turn out to be.

The schedule set for the day was jam packed  - from housing visits to press meetings, ministerial visits to political meetings -  Darren really got an insight into the busy life of the Housing Minister, as well as getting the opportunity to talk to John Healey about his work with Dreamscheme and the opportunities and benefits that this provides for young people.

He then got a big surprise, a few hours into the morning, when their schedule took in an unexpected visit to Number 10 Downing Street!

Gordon Brown wasn’t there at the time but Darren got a private tour of the building and a photo shoot opportunity outside of the famous front door!

“It was an amazing and fascinating day, surpassing all my expectations” said Darren. “I was really impressed by how open and straightforward he was and the incredible pace of his day. He literally didn’t stop from the moment I arrived at 7.30 in the morning to when I left, 11 hours later. The schedule is changing all the time and he’s continually being briefed or consulted about all sorts of matters but he was genuinely keen to hear more about the work I do with young people in Alfreton.

“The staff in his department were equally welcoming” said Darren “and I felt I got a real insider’s view of life at the top level of government.”

Click here to read our previous article about how Maintenance Technician, Darren Wilkinson succeeded in winning the UK Housing award. 

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