Two best selling authors and a prospective MP descended on a Brent secondary school to raise money for charity.

Ken Follett and Marina Lewycka were joined by Tulip Siddiq at Queens Park Community School on Aylestone Avenue, Brondesbury, to lend their support to the Promise Foundation.

Ms Siddiq, Labour Prospective Parliamentry Candidate for Hampstead and Kilburn, said: “I was really pleased to help with the event, it went very well. Ken Follett and Marina Lewycka said they loved the school, they loved being in Queens Park and were really pleased with the audience. It’s not very often you get to quiz famous novelists quite in the way that we did so people were really pleased.”

The Promise foundation was inspired by a former pupil called Promise, who introduced the event last Tuesday evening. With the help of a mentor at the school, she was able to put a difficult childhood behind her, attended Cambridge University and now works for London Citizens.

As well as fighting for a seat at next year’s General Election, Ms Siddiq mentors a 13-year-old boy for the charity, sitting with him and helping him weekly.

She said: “I really enjoy it and I feel that I learn a lot from it but it’s also very valuable. There are so many people in Queens Park who could spend two hours a week doing something like this.”

The two hour event was held in the school hall, both novelists interviewing one another on their writing styles and reading from their books, Mr Follett’s Edge of Eternity and Ms Lewycka’s most recent book, Various Pets Alive or Dead.

A raffle was held in the evening with a number of rare edition books signed and donated by other authors.

Ms Siddiq added: “When I met Ken and Marina and they said ‘do you want us to raise money for the Labour party?’ I said actually, ‘would you mind coming in and doing an event for the Promise Foundation’? With the Labour party I can raise money in other ways but I thought this would be a good way to get supporters to raise awareness of the foundation and also to raise money for it.”