DOZENS of residents were treated to a tour of the House of Commons with a special tour guide.

Braintree MP James Cleverly gave the Parliamentary tour to a group of constituents playing host to the party.

More than 50 residents were shown around the House of Commons, the House of Lords and Her Majesty’s Robe Room.

The group were part of Braintree U3A - the university of the third age group, which provides outings and activities for older and retired residents in Halstead and Braintree.

Group chairman David Eversden said everyone loved the trip and said Mr Cleverly was knowledgeable and charming.

He said: “We travelled up on a coach which took us about an hour and arrived at midday. Some of us had never visited before and we didn’t know what to expect.

“We met James at 2pm and right from the start he was very engaging and informative.

“The two chambers were smaller than what they looked like on television.

“It was a great insight and we cannot thank him enough.”

The Braintree U3A group visited Parliament on Friday, October 6.

The group has about 450 members with 43 interest groups, according to its website.

There are a range of outings and meetings are generally held between 2pm and 4pm on the third Wednesday of the month at Bocking Arts Centre.