26 June 2009
Class Room to Court Room at Hove Park School

Students at Hove Park School had a citizenship lesson with a difference when their class room was turned into a court room. The lesson in law was the grand finale of the Local Lawyers in Schools project run by a group of solicitors from Mayo Wynne Baxter.

For the last fourteen weeks the solicitors have been teaching various aspects of the law to the class. Local Lawyers in Schools is organised by the Citizenship Foundation, an education and participation charity, which arranges for law firms to go into schools across the country to run activities that teach about the legal elements of the Citizenship curriculum to Year 10 students.

One of the Hove Park students, Gabby Mitchell (14), said: “I’ve really enjoyed these lessons – they’ve been a good introduction to law. You see lawyers on films and TV but they’re not like that in real life – they’re actually quite funny when you meet them! I understand a lot more about what a solicitor does now and might even consider becoming one myself.”

Mayo Wynne Baxter is the first law firm in the country to launch Local Lawyers in Schools, designed for regional law firms. The team of nine volunteers is made up of trainee, and newly qualified solicitors and trainee legal executives.

Esther Salter, trainee solicitor and project co-ordinator at Mayo Wynne Baxter, said: “This is a really worthwhile project and we’ve thoroughly enjoyed the experience. The lessons are great fun and present a unique and interactive way to communicate with young people who wouldn’t normally have access to lawyers.”

Class teacher Hugh Garling said: “Citizenship has been part of the National Curriculum since 2002. Often teachers find certain legal aspects of the curriculum, especially those involving controversial issues, particularly challenging so we welcome input from the experts.

“The Mayo Wynne Baxter solicitors have done a fantastic job of engaging the students and have taught them an important part of the curriculum in an entertaining way. The class has obviously enjoyed the experience of meeting real legal practitioners and seeing their human side. Perhaps some of the students will now feel inspired to pursue a legal career themselves.”