Young Citizens

"Events like this bring the justice system to life."

As another year of the Magistrates' Court Mock Trials Competition drew to a close with the London Regional Final, the Minister of State for Courts and Legal Services Sarah Sackman had this to say about the role of magistrates. 👩‍⚖️

Full recap of the regional finals in the comments.

Our Magistrates' Court Mock Trials wrapped up this past weekend with regional finals in London.👨‍⚖

14 schools came from all over to join us at Croydon Magistrates' Court to articulately argue criminal cases in front of real judges in a real courtroom. A special mention to Belfast Royal Academy who made the trip all the way from Northern Ireland!

Stay tuned to find out who came out on top on the day. A huge thanks to all the schools, teachers, judges, volunteers, and courthouse workers who made it all possible! 💓

We were thrilled to see The Times and The Sunday Times highlight the Bar Mock Trial as a vital tool for preparing the next generation for an AI-driven world. 🌎

As the article notes, AI cannot replace the skills built through experiences like these. At Young Citizens, our programmes, do more than teach the law: they empower young people with agency, advocacy and build belonging by connecting young people to the institutions that shape our society. Beyond preparing young people for the world of work, we're preparing them to be active citizens in a rapidly changing environment.

Read the full article at the link below (subscription required) and stay tuned to Young Citizens' online platforms to be first to hear about the next Bar Mock Trials competition.

https://shorturl.at/8OXYL

In preparation for the Summer of Social Action, we’ll be hosting a short FREE webinar next week for schools discussing practical approaches to primary social action.

Sign up at the link below to join Young Citizens on Wednesday 13th May at 4pm as we share what strong pupil-led social action can look like in schools, including how to build pupil voice, community links and evidence of impact into the school day.

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This session is designed for primary headteachers, trust leaders, and colleagues in schools at all levels leading on personal development, enrichment, citizenship or civic education.

To sign up for this year’s Make a Difference Challenge or attend a free Kick Start Day in your local area, head to the comments for a link. ⏬

Kick Start Days for Make A Difference Challenge 2026 are here!

These multi-school events hosted at our 5 regional venues are a chance for our team to take you and your primary-age pupils through the pillars of great social action, and leave with a project for your school and community. We’re holding places for local schools that are within an easy commute of these locations on the following dates:

⭐ Friday 19th June: Liverpool – Everyman Theatre
⭐ Thursday 25th June: Birmingham – University of Law
⭐ Thursday 2nd July: Manchester – Manchester Metropolitan University
⭐ Wednesday 8th July: London – Brunel University
⭐ Thursday 9th July: Leeds Beckett University

Age groups: Any KS1-2 , but Year 5 and 6s may particularly benefit!

Head to our website for more information and to sign up: https://www.youngcitizens.org/programmes/make-a-difference-challenge/

Has your school signed up yet? Get ahead of curriculum changes, join The Big Legal Lesson from 23-27 February 2026!

In just over two years, Citizenship education will be mandatory across all key stages – including learning about the rule of law.

⚖️ That’s where The Big Legal Lesson comes in. Our new, free resource packs have been specially designed to help teachers prepare for the new curriculum, with dynamic and age-appropriate activities for primary schools, secondary schools and sixth-form colleges.

Now in its seventh year, this national learning event is on a mission to boost young people’s knowledge of their rights, responsibilities, and the rule of law.

✨ As one pupil said last year: “I found out that the law is going to be important to me for the rest of my life.”

Join thousands of educators that have already accessed our legal resources. Pledge your school’s involvement now and deliver a lesson about the law this February: https://www.youngcitizens.org/the-big-legal-lesson-2026-get-involved/

Thank you to our sponsors Mishcon de Reya and supporters The Law Society for making the campaign happen again in 2026.

Primary educators, have your say on democratic education for the chance to win a gift voucher 🏆🗳️

From 2028, Citizenship education will become statutory at KS1 and KS2, with a strong focus on democracy, law, media literacy, and critical thinking.

Young Citizens is inviting primary school teachers to shape what this looks like in practice by sharing their unique insights.

Our “Little Democracy Survey” is a chance to influence the tools and resources schools need to deliver high-quality democratic education.

✍️ The multiple-choice survey should only take around 7 minutes. Complete it here: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/R6MQDY5

As a thank you, we will enter the first 50 respondents into our early bird draw for a £50 Amazon voucher, and every respondent into our main draw for the chance to win a £150 Amazon voucher.

Share your thoughts by Friday 30 January to enter!

We recently launched The Big Democracy Lesson: a new national programme giving state schools free classroom resources to build democratic confidence and civic participation from primary age through to year 13 📚

Our campaign kicked off with an evening featuring young people in conversation with former Downing Street advisor and strategist turned author and host of The Rest Is Politics, Alastair Campbell.

The panel discussed their views on the state of democracy, the support they need to participate as citizens and how we rebuild optimism for their generation in a fractured information and political landscape 🌐

Here are some highlights...

“I think that [democratic education] is overlooked. I am told that we had a Citizenship lesson in year 10 but I cannot remember having it, and I think that speaks volumes.” - Lydia, Year 12

“Instagram and TikTok create social bubbles, which lead to radicalisation and influence by other people’s opinions. Your choices need to be based on your opinions and not the opinions of others.” - Tajus, Year 12

“Speaking for many people, I can say that we get most of our information from social media, but it can be misleading. I believe that we should be educated more about these things, but currently we are not.” - Shad, Year 12

“The Big Democracy Lesson is a great opportunity for young people to speak with their peers and teachers in classrooms. These political discussions mean that many of the effects of radicalisation won’t happen.” - Iman Mansoor, My Life My Say Squad Leader

A huge thank you to the Attorney General, Lord Hermer KC, for opening the event with a speech backing citizenship education, the introduction of votes at 16 and the importance of the rule of law in democracy.

Read the full report of the event and get involved with the campaign: https://www.youngcitizens.org/news/young-people-join-panel-with-alastair-campbell-at-launch-of-the-big-democracy-lesson/

Thank you to our supporters Fieldfisher and RELX/RX, and the The IDRC for hosting the event.

Photo credit: Sabrina Fearon-Melville