I was delighted to take part in a brilliant event last week at Northumbria University, conceived by Dr Ali Struthers (Reader & Director of Widening Participation at the University of Warwick) and Dr Malvika Unnithan (Assistant Professor at Northumbria University) and funded by the ALT (Association of Law Teachers): Legal Education in Primary Schools. There were some excellent presentations during the day and room for lots of discussion around how pressing it is that youngsters are exposed to aspects of the law throughout their education , as well as how this might be achieved. Unsurprisingly, the recent TV phenomenon Adolescence was mentioned a number of times during the day.

A high point of the event was realising that one of my students from many years ago was present and that she was now a primary school teacher! So glad you came Sonam Sadhra! Here’s a quick rundown of the sessions:

Gutted that my train didn’t get me to Newcastle in time to see Professor Dawn Watkin’s update on the terrific Project Fortitude but I managed to catch the next one from Ali on her ever-popular School Tasking programme. The activities are fun and interactive (in a similar vein to Taskmaster) and we got some insights into some of them in the session. They certainly meet the programme aims – to introduce children to law (and make them think it might be interesting), to take positive steps to widen access to the profession and also to build positive connections between schools and universities. Gives me a warm fuzzy feeling every time I hear Ali talk about it!

Next up, a chance to try out the World Cafe model of discussion, guided by Dr Emily Finch (Reader at the University of Surrey) and Dr Filipa Tavares Moreira Mateus Bispo (Lecturer at Oxford Brookes Universty). I’d not come across this method before and it was interesting to see its potential for exploring both perceptions and possible solutions for complex legal and social problems. They got us discussing what children & young people should know about criminal law and how this can be achieved most effectively. Taking part in this certainly made you realise it could work on a bigger scale successfully.

Then it was my turn! I got participants flexing their creativity whilst thinking about how you might use design in class to spark engagement in the law. I took a rough, rule of law type approach as my inspiration. We sketched out school rules on post-its and then tried out a method used in legal design – empathy mapping. Our focus? A pupil who had broken a rule with his friend, but only he was punished. Also got the chance to do a bit of a whistlestop tour through my various projects in public legal education (have a look at some of these on TL;DR). Most of my work is aimed at university students upwards, but the Leducate Project is for 14-16 year old schoolchildren.

Final slot on a packed day was taken by Lucinda Acland, who co-hosts the Kid’s Law podcast with Alma-Constance Denis-Smith. Lucinda is Head of Learning and Development at LAPG but has worked in the legal sector for over 25 years – beginning as a solicitor and PSL. Funnily enough I had just heard about this recently (after the excellent BAILII Annual lecture ‘Valuing Lawyers’, given by Baroness Carr of Walton-on the-Hill) when chatting to Alma-Constance’s mum, Dana Denis-Smith, founder of the First 100 Years Project. The podcast is a triumph, with amazing guests and a great knack at empowering the listener, explaining complicated things in a way that anyone can understand. We listened to a recording of Alma-Constance, speaking on how shocking it was to her in 2021 to discover that when she turned 10 she could be criminally responsible. This sparked an idea – making a podcast to bring alive the law for her age group.

Lucinda spoke on how the BBC4 ‘Life Scientific’ series was an inspiration for the podcast, as were the many issues that popped up during the pandemic. Recent interview topics include ‘Can rivers and forests have legal rights?’ (Paul Powlesland, Garden Court Chambers) and All about inquiries (Flora Page, 23 Essex Street Chambers, who represented the sub postmasters in the Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry. Find the podcast on Spotify and Apple. They have an incredible back catalogue of speakers!

What was clear from the day is that there is a great deal of appetite and enthusiasm for ensuring that children are exposed to law’s importance to everyday life from a much earlier age. Loads of ideas in the room, so watch this space.

Written by Emily Allbon, Professor of Law and Director of Legal Design at The City Law School. Big thanks to Ali and Malvika for the invitation to speak, and for the image used above.