Judy Hulland, JP welcomed by Year 6

On Wednesday 28th June, Judy Hulland, a Worcester magistrate, came into school to talk to Year Six about the role of magistrates and how the courts operate. We heard that 95% of all court cases are dealt with in Magistrates Courts. Only the most serious cases, which require longer than six months sentencing, are dealt with by the Crown Court. Pupils also discovered that from the age of 10 they are considered responsible for their own actions and therefore if they commit an offence they can be detained by the police and tried in a youth court. They took part in a role-play and had an interesting question and answer session to develop an understanding of the different circumstances that have to be considered when hearing a case. Pupils were very interested to learn that magistrates are volunteers from many different backgrounds, races and religions, that they are not paid and that anyone can volunteer unless they have a criminal record or work for the police.

It was wonderful to welcome Judy Hulland back to King’s St Alban’s.