Curriculum subject: Citizenship
Key Stage: 3
Theme: Magna Carta today
Topic: Young people and the justice system
Rationale
One of the clauses in the 1215 Magna Carta that remains a part of English law today is the
right to justice and a fair trial. However, some believe that this fundamental right may be
infringed or denied because of the way some children and young people are treated in the
justice system. For example, children and young people may be at risk if the justice system does
not cater appropriately for their ability to understand and participate in legal proceedings or
allow them to give the best of themselves when in court.
In this activity, pupils explore how the justice system is developing to address the particular
requirements of young people. Specifically, pupils find out about how and why youth courts
operate differently to adult courts. They learn about the steps taken to improve the process of
justice to help ensure it is accessible to young people whether as a witness or defendant in a
case.
Pupils will benefit from some prior knowledge and understanding of the basic features of the
justice system and key legal terms: court, magistrate, defendant, prosecution, witness, lawyer,
youth offending team. Care should be taken to consider the needs of any pupils who have had
first-hand experience of the justice system.
Content
Historical sources:
 Magna Carta, 1215
 European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms
(1953)
 Human Rights Act 1998
Recommended reading (short articles):
Magna Carta and human rights by Shami Chakrabarti
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External Links:
‘Young Citizen’s passport. Your guide to the law in England and Wales’. Citizenship Foundation
http://www.citizenshipfoundation.org.uk/main/page.php?450
Crown Prosecution Service guidance for schools
http://www.cps.gov.uk/derbyshire/assets/uploads/files/Training%20pack%20version%20Fina
l%20(2).pdf
Magistrates Association information for young people on youth courts
http://www.magistrates-association.org.uk/education/info-for-young-people/courts/youthcourts/
U18 Victim’s Code Lucy’s story
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t8gMFYl6Nm4
Debate Wise
http://debatewise.org/debates/3003-criminal-responsibility-age-of/
Key questions
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What is the age of criminal responsibility in England and Wales? How does this
compare with other countries?
Should the justice system treat young people differently to adults?
How do youth courts work differently to adult courts?
What barriers can prevent young people from accessing justice? How can these barriers
be mitigated?
Could the justice system be changed to ensure greater fairness to young people?
Activities
1) Check pupils understand Magna Carta clauses about justice and a fair trial, that this
remains a key principle of English law today, protected by Article 6 of the European
Convention on Human Rights (adopted in 1950, in force since 1953) and also included
in the 1998 Human Rights Act.
2) Ask pupils to find out the age of criminal responsibility in different countries. How does
the UK compare? Explain that some people believe the justice system in England and
Wales remains unfair because the age of criminal responsibility at 10 is lower than
international guidelines and that special adaptions to proceedings are insufficient to
cater for the needs of some children and young people.
3) Explain the focus of the activity will be on youth courts. Ask pupils to list what they
already know about the youth justice system and youth courts, for example young
people aged 10 to 17 may be taken to court if they commit a crime; and youth courts
are different to adult courts in a number of ways including usually having three
magistrates, not having juries, and hearing less serious cases. Ask pupils to identify any
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questions about youth courts and the treatment of young people that they would like
answers to.
Check to ensure the whole class has understood the main points of difference and any
unanswered questions are addressed. You could use an illustration of a youth court
such as the one available from CPS or the Magistrates Association and ask pupils to
label each person and their role to check learning.
Organise the pupils into groups of three and give them each a short scenario based on
a case where a young person is a victim, witness to a crime or suspect to explore issues
of fairness/unfairness. For example:
 a young person who is a victim of a crime attends court. They are still suffering
the after effects of the incident. He/she is allowed to provide a written
statement which is read out for them
 a young person who was a witness to a mugging and robbery by another
young person is too frightened to attend court in person. The witness is allowed
to give evidence by video link but becomes too upset to answer questions
 a young person suspected of covering a car in graffiti has literacy problems and
doesn’t understand the questions put to them in court by the prosecution
Ask pupils to consider each scenario to identify and record the main barriers to justice
and fairness for the victim, witness or defendant. Once they have a list of two or three
points ask them to suggest any steps that could be taken to mitigate these barriers and
enable young people to give the best of themselves when attending court, whether as
victim, witness or defendant. You could use an audio recording as stimulus and to help
student engage with the issues such as the young victim Lucy’s story published by the
Ministry of Justice. Ask pupils to discuss whether they think the steps taken to protect
victims/witnesses are always taken.
Join groups of pupils up so that each group presents their ideas on one scenario to the
other group, and the second group adds additional points. Ensure pupils record a
summary of their group’s discussion and highlight any new points of learning they have
gained from their discussion.
Debrief as a class. Has anything they have learned about youth courts and young
people’s participation in court proceedings surprised them?
Extension activities
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You could expand the types of scenarios discussed in section 4 to address learning
about other aspects of the youth justice system and legal rights. For example:
o a student is caught up in a protest march when walking to university and is then
arrested with others and taken to a police station. They are held in a cell
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without being told what is happening to them or being offered access to legal
representation
o a young person is stopped by police and searched. The police handle the young
person roughly and will not explain why they have been stopped and searched.
They begin asking lots of questions without further explanation.
To further develop and deepen pupils’ knowledge, understanding and skills in relation
the operation of the justice system and the courts, participate in the Citizenship
Foundation’s annual Mock Trial competition or take your pupils to a workshop led by
the National Centre for Citizenship and the Law.
Following on from the trial, your students may have some strong opinions about young
people and the justice system. If they are keen to advocate for change, encourage the
class to develop a campaign for change which outlines their key messages, lobbying
approach and key figures they would ideally like to approach to galvanise support. Ask
them to consider what advocacy groups are in place already; are there ways to work
alongside them to campaign for change?
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