A small group with high aspirations from Darrick Wood Secondary school set out on an experience like no other. Tuesday the 22nd of February saw 23 hopeful individuals travel to the profound Supreme Court in Parliament Square to gain insight of a prestigious career in law.
Each year, the highest court in the country offers the opportunity for a select group of young people to attend a series of debates and a tour of the building. This year, local Orpington students had a chance to claim control over their futures and practice their debating skills. Lucy Savine an attendee stated: “law has always been a fascination of mine, particularly how it can be different interpreted.”
The day began with a personal tour of the Supreme Court, focusing on historical aspects such as the robes worn in the Tudor period during previous cases. The background of law helped to “understand the development of the present day justice system and how it would continue to change in the future.” Julia Skripnichenko enthused. Opening in October 2009 this system replaced the Appellate Committee of the House of Lords as the top court in the United Kingdom.
Following the in depth tour, the year 12 students were prompted into discussion surrounding the features of a court, the types of cases and circumstances whilst increasing their knowledge of the justice system. Topics such as the sectors of court and roles of participants arose and the group engaged with each other to express their base knowledge.
This new learnt information was then put into reality as they sat in a real-life, current court trial. Olivia Barrett expressed how: “my interest in law and justice has deepened after the live viewing of that case.” This experience further solidified the factors of the system and stood as a visual representation of a day in court.
Finally, an interactive opportunity took place where the group visited the Royal Court of Justice in the Strand. Here, the team was separated into prosecution, defence and judiciary roles before acting out a mock trial of a previously solved case. The students took full advantage of this task and became immersed in their position to successfully debate and collaborate. Abi Hewitt mentioned: “the whole day was a great experience which has opened my eyes to this career path as a possible option.” The students who attended this trip expressed their delight at the engagement into this setting. Many persistently commenting on how grateful they are to be given this opportunity which helps to guide and assist in their journey into a professional career.
Lucy Savine offered advice for this job path: “read and research past cases and their outcomes, as well as deciding which type of law interests you the most.” This trip into court allowed the students to catch a glimpse of their possible futures or just develop a clear understanding of the justice world.
This Supreme Court experience provided a perfect opportunity for the future workforce to reinforce their skills and get ahead of their game.
Comments