Unit name | Children and Young People in the Law A |
---|---|
Unit code | SPOL30057 |
Credit points | 20 |
Level of study | H/6 |
Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 1 (weeks 1 - 12) |
Unit director | Dr. Jo Staines |
Open unit status | Open |
Pre-requisites |
None |
Co-requisites |
None |
School/department | School for Policy Studies |
Faculty | Faculty of Social Sciences and Law |
Within an overall framework of children’s rights, this unit analyses children and young people’s status within the English legal system.A wide range of topics are used to explore the tensions inherent within children’s participation and self-determination in legal contexts, including children and young people as witnesses and defendants in criminal proceedings; as subjects of medical intervention; as refugees and asylum seekers; ; as parties to parental divorce and separation; or involved in adoption, fostering and child protection proceedings. Discussions will focus on the potential discrepancies between enabling children’s autonomy and ensuring their best interests are paramount in legal decisions, and how these competing, and sometimes contradictory, aims can be reconciled. The objectives of the unit are to develop students’ awareness and knowledge of:
Students who successfully complete this unit will have:
Teaching methods include lectures, seminars, student presentations and guided individual study.
Formative assessment by an essay maximum 2000 words.
Summative assessment:
3 hour unseen exam
• Fionda, J. (ed) (2001) Legal Concepts of Childhood. Oxford: Hart Publishing
• Piper C (2008) Investing in Children: Policy, law and practice in context, Cullompton: Willan
• Darbyshire, P. (2005) Darbyshire on the English Legal System, (8th ed), London: Sweet and Maxwell
• Herring, J (2011) Family Law, Harlow: Longmans
• Jones P and Welch S (2010) Rethinking Children’s Rights: Attitudes in Contemporary Society, London: Continuum
• Slapper G (2010) How the Law Works, London: Routledge