Select Committee Training

Learn how to perform with dignity and poise under televised, pressured questioning by MPs

This half-day select committee training course helps spokespeople to prepare for tough questioning on-camera by MPs

What you’ll learn

A grilling by MPs in a select committee is a particularly challenging experience for spokespeople and can cause serious reputational damage if the encounter goes badly. Our specialised training prepares delegates to put their case before an intimidating panel of powerful, elected individuals who won’t hold back from asking bruising questions for democratic, party political or career reasons. The full spokesperson range of skills is explored and deployed in this course, including evidence-based messaging, crisis messaging, anticipating lines of attack, emotional control, appropriate tone, empathy, projecting confidence with voice and body language.

How you’ll learn

Courses for individuals and groups pairs take place at our central London training centres or your own offices. Sessions are led by two senior broadcast journalists who are also specialists in hostile interview training. You’ll complete a series of recorded Q&As, fielding tough questions from both trainers.  Each grilling is followed by playback and trainer critique. After training, you’ll receive full course notes by email and a link from which to download copies of your recordings. Each delegate also receives their own, personalised post-training evaluation report from the trainer, assessing their performance during the course and providing suggestions, exercises and tips for continuing to improve and develop.

Who this Select Committee Training is for

This course is for you if you are preparing to represent your organisation in an accountability appearance in front of a parliamentary select committee. If you are looking to build your public speaking skills more generally, you may like to try our Public Speaking Training or our Panel Speaking Training.

Course Modules

Module 1

Select Committee Training Theory

  1. Select Committee member motivations
  2. Anticipating lines of attack
  3. Techniques for answering hostile questions
  4. Technique for answering crisis questions
  5. Defusing hostility with tone and empathy
  6. Voice and body language techniques for projecting confidence
Module 2

Practical exercises

  1. Q&A 1
  2. Trainer critique of Q&A 1
  3. Q&A 2 – recorded
  4. Playback and critique of Q&A 2
  5. Breathing exercises for overcoming nerves

Select Committee Training

Learn how to perform with dignity and poise under televised, pressured questioning by MPs

Get in touch

What our students say

View all testimonials

I honestly thought that the whole day was fabulous!!! You really couldn’t have done anymore for us. The combination of practical exercises and feedback was particularly useful, it was a challenging day (in a very good way) in that we really had to think, learn and adapt quickly. I know the team are significantly better prepared for media interviews after this training.

Fragile X Society
, Managing Director

The team is flexible, slick, well-resourced and overall simply first class. Their expertise and knowledge have been invaluable. I was delighted with our choice, so I’d have no hesitation in recommending them

Prostate Cancer UK
, Head of External Relations

The lifelike interview settings and tasks that PA Media Training deal in replicate perfectly the real-world feel of a tough media interview and help the delegates come out of the day feeling much more confident that they can play an active role in representing their organisation.

Transport for London
, Director of Communications & Corporate Affairs

What a great session we had on Communicating with Impact. Bridgid shared practical techniques to enhance and develop our communications skills so we can present and speak publicly or to senior stakeholders with confidence and impact.  I speak for my whole team in highly recommending Bridgid Nzekwu if you are after effective and fun communication training.

Vodafone
, Group Legal Director, Corporate Commercial & Compliance

The training scenarios are as real to life as you could possibly get. They took considerable time to research our current plans and issues and used these to design a series of true to life radio and TV interviews. The team is outstanding, and their expertise and knowledge has been invaluable. Book them – you’ll be glad you did.

NHS Vale of York Clinical Commissioning Group
, Communications Manager

PA Media Training were efficient, well organised and genuinely lovely people to deal with and, importantly for us, able to provide flexibility around our needs to create the bespoke training we required. I wouldn’t hesitate to use them for further training or to recommend them to other organisations.

Mayor of London’s Press Office
, Head of Media

The small class sizes nurture a comfortable environment where everyone supports and learns from each other. The staff helped me hone in on my writing skills and develop the confidence to feel comfortable on camera.

Camilla Foster
, Reporter
, Newsquest

Contact us

Do you wish to train on one of our specialist courses? Start by filling in the application form – we’ll ask you for some important information such as your education and employment history.

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By submitting this application form you confirm your acceptance that the information you have provided will be used during the recruitment procedure. Once the recruitment procedure is completed, the data will be stored for one year and then destroyed. If you are the successful candidate, relevant information may be taken from this form and used as part of your personnel record.
If you would like to receive regular updates from PA Media Academy, please tick here:

Contact us

For more information , simply fill out the form and a member of our team will be in touch.

"*" indicates required fields

Name*
By submitting this application form you confirm your acceptance that the information you have provided will be used during the recruitment procedure. Once the recruitment procedure is completed, the data will be stored for one year and then destroyed. If you are the successful candidate, relevant information may be taken from this form and used as part of your personnel record.
If you would like to receive regular updates from PA Media Academy, please tick here:

Contact us

For more information , simply fill out the form and a member of our team will be in touch.