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Year 11

What is Parliament and what are its functions?

I can explain what the UK Parliament is and what it does.

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Share activities with pupils
New
New
Year 11

What is Parliament and what are its functions?

I can explain what the UK Parliament is and what it does.

Download all resources
Share activities with pupils

These resources will be removed by end of Summer Term 2025.

Switch to our new teaching resources now - designed by teachers and leading subject experts, and tested in classrooms.

These resources were created for remote use during the pandemic and are not designed for classroom teaching.

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Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. UK Parliament is made up of three parts.
  2. The government is formed after a general election.
  3. The main political parties in the UK are Conservatives, Labour, Liberal Democrats and the SNP.
  4. Political parties and APPGs support democracy by offering choices and representing diverse views.

Keywords

  • Parliament - the institution of Government in the UK; it comprises of three parts: the House of Commons, the House of Lords and the monarch; its purpose is to debate, make laws and scrutinise the Government

  • Government - the group of people with the authority to govern a country. In the UK, the Government is chosen and led by the Prime Minister (PM)

  • Political party - an organised group of people who share similar beliefs and goals about how society should run

Common misconception

All members of political parties share the same views.

Political parties generally align with core values and principles but will have varying opinions on certain issues.


To help you plan your year 11 citizenship lesson on: What is Parliament and what are its functions?, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...

Visits to the UK Parliament provide an excellent opportunity to deepen pupils' understanding of how government works. If this is not possible, virtual tours are also available, offering an engaging way for pupils to explore Parliament.
Teacher tip

Equipment

Content guidance

  • Depiction or discussion of serious crime

Supervision

Adult supervision required

Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2025), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Lesson video

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Starter quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
Separation of powers in the UK occurs between which branches?
adminstrative, executive, and judicial branches
Correct answer: executive, legislative, and judicial branches
legislative, judicial and administrative branches
legislative, executive and administrative branches
Q2.
Match the type of democracy to the correct definition.
Correct Answer:direct,citizens vote directly on laws and policies

citizens vote directly on laws and policies

Correct Answer:representative,citizens elect officials to make decisions

citizens elect officials to make decisions

Q3.
Which of the following are considered national elections in the UK?
Correct answer: general election
local council election
PPC or Police and Crime Commissioner election
regional election
Q4.
Citizens elect of Parliament to represent them in the House of Commons.
Correct Answer: Members, members
Q5.
A low voter is when there is a lower percentage of eligible voters that actually voted in an election.
Correct Answer: turnout, turn out
Q6.
Which of these is an example of voter apathy?
a person votes in every election
a person actively campaigns for a candidate
Correct answer: a person feels that their vote won’t make a difference
a person votes for a party that they do not favour

Exit quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
Match the words to their correct definitions.
Correct Answer:government,a group of people with the authority to govern a country

a group of people with the authority to govern a country

Correct Answer:political party,a group of people who share similar ideas about running the country

a group of people who share similar ideas about running the country

Correct Answer:parliament,a place where laws are made and debated

a place where laws are made and debated

Q2.
Who leads the government after a general election?
The leader of the opposition
The monarch
Correct answer: The Prime Minister
The Speaker
Q3.
A party is a group of people who share similar beliefs and goals about how society should run. They organise to try and gain political power.
Correct Answer: political
Q4.
Which of the following is a role of Parliament in the UK?
to appoint the Prime Minister
to organise political parties
to form the Government
Correct answer: to make laws and check the Government’s work
Q5.
Which of the following statements is true?
political party members share the same views on every issue
political parties are groups that only focus on one issue
Correct answer: political party members can disagree with each other within their group
political parties never change their beliefs
Q6.
What do All-Party Parliamentary Groups (APPGs) do?
Correct answer: they allow MPs and Lords from all parties to work together on specific issues
they are when more than one political party forms a government
they focus on one specific party’s policies
they organise elections for all parties