A rising star of politics has won a chance to be mentored by a senior Labour politician to help her develop her career in public service.

Ivana Bartoletti will get the chance for one to one guidance from Harriet Harman, who is deputy leader of the Labour party, Shadow Deputy Prime Minister and Shadow Under Secretary of State for International Development.

Mrs Bartoletti who lives in Stoke Newington was selected against stiff competition in the first annual national political education programme developed by the Fabian Society Women’s Network.

The scheme aims to improve political understanding, open up new networks and help move women forward in their pursuit of a public life or political career.

Other mentors include MPs Tessa Jowell, Mary Creagh and Kate Green.

Labour Party Leader Ed Miliband said the mentees are “22 cracks in the glass ceiling” and said he wanted to see an equal gender split women round the Shadow Cabinet table, as well as Cabinet table.

The scheme will help Mrs Bartoletti learn more about the working of the Labour party.

She is already an experienced politician and was a member of the Italian party Democrats of the Left - Democratici di Sinistra - before moving to the UK.

She was leader of the Italian Union of students for two years and became head of the human rights section of Democratice di Sinistra.

In 2007 she became a policy adviser to the Italian human rights and equal opportunities minister in the Romano Prodi government.

She now works as a criminal justice and immigration act programme manager in NHS Protect, which combats crime in the NHS, with expertise in information governance, data protection and information sharing.

She said: “I have 15 years political experience.

“I believe that I can use my energy and my knowledge and experience in the Labour.”

She added: “It is a challenging time for politics.”

The 31-year-old is active with Hackney Labour party where she acts as an observer and is involved with local politics in the Cazenove ward where she lives.