How does a surprise MP prepare for life in office?

Members of Parliament, newly elected in the 2024 general election, gather in the House of Commons Chamber for a group photo

Labour did exactly what the polls predicted and won a landslide victory at the general election.

But ousting the Conservative government brought its fair share of surprises at the local counts.

Four MPs in the East of England describe what it has been like to be in at the deep end, and a former member offers some advice to fresh-faced newbies.

'Westminster is a maze'

Marie Goldman, MP for Chelmsford, described the House of Commons as akin to Hogwarts

For newly elected Liberal Democrat MP Marie Goldman, winning Chelmsford is, she says, "really quite something".

The constituency has been represented by the Conservatives for 74 years.

Ms Goldman says her win was a team effort, bolstered by supporters who have been campaigning "literally for decades".

"It's a real privilege for me to win, but then to see the delight and frankly relief on some of their faces, to finally see it happen was just such a pleasure and really made a victory so much sweeter," she says.

What she was most unprepared for was the day after the election, she adds, when the job actually started.

"That deluge of emails that comes into your inbox and you don't have staff because you can't guarantee that you're going to win," she says.

"You're relying very much on volunteers who help you do lots of things, but they can't deal with the casework stuff."

She is currently hot-desking in Parliament, and says the amount of information they have been given when arriving at Westminster - "a strange and completely different world" - could be overwhelming.

"The Palace of Westminster is a complete maze," she adds.

"There are so many staircases, paintings and statues and people in slightly strange antiquated uniforms and with very, very odd job titles."

'I didn't anticipate even standing as an MP'

Terry Jermy was born and brought up in Thetford, within his constituency

One of the region's new MPs was at the centre of the dramatic "Portillo moment" of the night as former prime minister Liz Truss had her healthy majority obliterated.

Terry Jermy, a Thetford county councillor for more than a decade, was elected to the true blue seat of South West Norfolk by just 630 votes - the first Labour MP to take the constituency since a by-election in 1959.

"I would never have said it was likely, but I knew it was a possibility," says Mr Jermy, who admitted that the "awkward" wait for Truss to arrive on stage for the declaration "felt like an eternity".

"I had never anticipated even standing, let alone becoming an MP, but the change came for me when my dad had a stroke," he explains.

The 65-year-old was placed in a medically-induced coma in his final two months, having contracted pneumonia and Covid. The experience of visiting him in hospital during the pandemic was an eye-opener for Mr Jermy, who was desperate to do "something positive to help".

He says it is "awe-inspiring" to be in the Palace of Westminster.

But he adds he is a confirmed "country boy" who is far happier keeping his permanent base in Norfolk and travelling to and from the capital as necessary.

One of his tasks on his first weekend as MP was to step down from Thetford Town Council, Breckland District Council and the county council, having been involved in local politics in his home town for many years.

Now he is committed to representing a much larger area.

He has met prime minister Sir Keir Starmer, albeit among the more than 400 Labour MPs, for which "they struggled to find a room big enough".

"But here's a bit of gossip for you," he says.

"At the first meeting of all the Labour MPs he mentioned how pleased he was that his aunt, who lives in Norfolk, has a Labour MP for the first time ever."

'It's an utter privilege'

MP James McMurdock put himself forward for Reform, thinking he had an outside chance of winning

James McMurdock took the South Basildon and East Thurrock seat for Reform UK by just 98 votes from the Conservatives.

After initially ticking a box to join Reform, he ticked a second box for people who wanted to be considered as candidates.

"I thought it was a long-shot, but I didn’t think the chance was zero," he said.

The race was tight, with a full re-count, but finally he was told he had won the seat.

"I felt an instant sense of responsibility to do my best, to act in the best interests of my constituents," he says.

Mr McMurdock had never visited the House of Commons before it became his place of work.

"The environment is so rich and beautiful, it’s an utter privilege to work there," he says.

He believes he will overcome the procedural or "technical elements" of being an MP, adding that the former Tory, now Reform MP Lee Anderson has been showing him the ropes.

And what had surprised him so far?

"The House of Commons [chamber] is smaller than I expected, and it's a really tight squeeze," he said.

'You need someone on the ball'

Ivan Henderson expected to come third but won his seat in 1997

Former Harwich MP Ivan Henderson was first elected in 1997 - the last time Labour won by a landslide.

Harwich had never returned a Labour MP, and Mr Henderson, who still works as a local and district councillor in Essex, says he thought he would come third.

"At that time, in 1997, all the media were concentrating on places like Basildon, all of a sudden we were told they were heading down to Clacton where the count was, to interview us," he remembers.

Mr Henderson says he had been so confident of losing, he had planned to take a shift the next day at the docks where he had worked for 20 years.

Instead, he had to tell the manager that he was off to Westminster.

"Being an unexpected MP, I didn’t have an office. I didn’t have any staff. You're literally starting from scratch," he says.

"And from day one the mail starts coming in, that was the shock.. it was just bundles straightaway."

Despite having to hit the deck running, his advice to new MPs is to take their time when it comes to staffing.

A good parliamentary and constituency secretary are essential, he believes, as "you need someone on the ball".

He says the important things for newbies are "getting an office, getting your team together in the constituency, and doing your work".

"People will be a bit patient - but then they’ll want responses," he says.

He also advised MPs to ignore social media and to take the opportunity to get ahead now, before they are handed additional parliamentary responsibilities.

"The pressures will come, but I loved every minute," he said.

"I’m honoured and pleased that I had the opportunity [to serve]."