Lesson video

Hello, I'm Mrs. Barry and I'll be looking at this lesson with you today.

We've got a great lesson ahead of us.

So let's get started.

Today's lesson comes from the unit: What are the strengths and weaknesses of the legal system? This lesson is called Who Enforces the Law? And our outcome for today is to explain the roles of a range of different people involved in enforcing the law and evaluate the significance of their roles.

You might have some understanding of these points from previous lessons, but that's okay if you don't because we're here to learn it together and we'll achieve this outcome by the end.

In this lesson, we're going to use a range of keywords, so let's cover them now.

A law are rules, usually made by Parliament that are used to order the way in which a society behaves.

Enforcement is the act of making sure rules, laws, or agreements are followed or carried out.

And a role refers to the function or responsibility that someone or something has in a particular situation, system, or organisation.

Our lesson today has two parts, and we're going to start with who is involved in enforcing the law? Law enforcement refers to the people and groups that make sure everyone follows the laws and rules in society.

This includes things like stopping crime, catching criminals, keeping the peace in communities.

There is a process in place which ensures citizens follow the laws and are held accountable if they don't.

This system varies across the different nations that make up the UK.

There are many people and organisations involved in the justice system in England and Wales.

They all have a role in enforcing the law.

Can you think of any? Now there are three layers to the justice system, which is slightly different to thinking about the individuals and organisations involved in the justice system.

So you might have thought of things like the police or barristers or solicitors, but we're gonna start by thinking about these three layers to the justice system under which those groups and people fall.

So we have the laws themselves, we have the courts, and we also have the police.

And the police probably are the most common ones that people think of when we think about who enforces the laws.

But the system is much boredom than that.

And we're going to have a look at all the different people and organisations involved in enforcing the law.

Within each layer, there are many different roles and organisations, all of whom are involved in enforcing the law in England and Wales.

And they include things like judges, magistrates, juries, police officers, solicitors, barristers, probation officers, and Parliament.

The Crown Prosecution Service, or CPS, is also involved and they are an independent body.

This means that they give a view without any bias.

So let's have a think about what we've learned so far about enforcing laws and consider this question, why do we enforce laws? Is it A, to make sure everyone can do whatever they want? B, to keep people safe and maintain order in society? C, to punish people for no reason? Or D, to make it harder for people to live their lives? Okay, well done if you recognise that enforcing laws is to keep people safe and maintain order in our society.

Do you know the answer to this? The police are only people who enforce the law.

Is that true or is it false? Okay, so that one's false.

And although the police are one group who enforce the law, they're actually part of a whole range of people in groups who take part in this.

So let's practise what we've learned.

Sam is trying to remember who the main people in groups are involved in enforcing the law.

Identify the groups she has forgotten.

So Sam says, The groups who are involved in enforcing the law, include the police, judges, Parliament, the Crown Prosecution Service, and can you help me remember who I have forgotten? So give that a go now pause the video and when you're ready to have a check together, then unpause.

Well done for giving that a go.

Sam was trying to remember who the main people and groups were involved in enforcing the law.

And she had said the groups who are involved in enforcing the law include the police, judges, Parliament, Crown Prosecution Service.

And can you help me remember who I've forgotten? And your answer might have looked like this.

So Sam has forgotten to include the following people and groups, magistrates, juries, solicitors, barristers and probation officers.

Well done if that's what you've put.

So part two of our lesson asks what are the roles of those who enforce the law? So we're gonna delve deeper into all those groups and individuals who are part of enforcing the law.

Each person and group plays a specific role in enforcing the law.

While many believe it's mainly the responsibility of police officers, they rely on others to fully enforce the law.

For example, judges work in both criminal and civil courts and they are known as the judiciary.

They interpret the law presiding over court cases and giving sentences when someone is found guilty.

A jury is made up of 12 adults who sit in the Crown Court.

Their role is to decide if a person accused of a crime is innocent or guilty.

They're chosen at random using the electoral role.

Magistrates have a similar role to judges, but they handle smaller or less serious cases.

For example, traffic tickets or minor crimes.

If they find someone guilty, they give sentences like fines or community service.

Full-time magistrates are called district judges.

They're often barristers or solicitors, usually the seven years experience, and they sit alone.

Part-time magistrates come from all walks of life.

They usually sit in court as a group of three.

So let's have a check of what we got so far.

Judges, magistrates, and juries all work within the court system to enforce laws.

Which one is made up of 12 people? Is it A, judge? B, magistrate? Or C, jury? Well done if you remembered.

There is 12 people that make up a jury.

Let's have a look at some other people who are involved in enforcing the law.

The police do not make the laws.

They are there to enforce them.

Their job is to protect the public, arrest law breakers and collect evidence to bring them before the courts.

The Crown Prosecution Service, or CPS, advises the police on cases for possible prosecution.

They decide on what charge should be applied to a person accused of committing a crime.

Solicitors help enforce the law by giving legal advice, representing clients and making sure people get a fair chance in court.

All solicitors must pass law exams before they give legal advice to people who go to court.

Barristers are legal experts trained to speak in all types of courts.

They present cases for the prosecution or defence, presenting evidence, questioning witnesses, and explaining the case to the judge and jury to help ensure a fair decision.

So let's check on those roles.

So let's have a think about those roles we've just looked at.

Police officers, Crown Prosecution Service, and solicitors, all work to enforce laws.

Which one does not directly interact with the person accused of crime? Is it A, police officers? B, Crown Prosecution Service? Or C, solicitors? Well done if you remembered.

It's the Crown Prosecution Service that does not directly interact with the person accused of a crime.

So we've got some more roles to look at.

To probation officers write reports for the court about offenders and supervise them back into the community.

If an offender is given community service, they will work with a local probation officers.

Parliament, create laws and review laws that have been enacted, usually every three to five years, to make sure they're effective and serve the purpose for which they were intended.

Parliament also set maximum and minimum sentences.

So thinking about those roles.

Barristers, probation officers and Parliament, all aid in enforcing laws.

Which reviews the laws that citizens have to follow? Is it A, barristers? B, probation officers? Or C, Parliament? So well done, if you remember it Parliament that review the laws citizens have to follow, and they do that every three to five years.

So are there any roles or organisations that are more important or influential? Just have a think for a moment about your view on that.

So we've got some students here who are gonna give us their views.

Lucas thinks this, he says, I think the police are the most important law enforcers because they deal directly with citizens who break the law on a day-to-day basis.

Parliament is also significant law enforcer as they decide the laws that the country and set maximum and minimum sentences.

Izzy's got a different opinion though, so let's have a look at what Izzy has to say.

She says, The CPS plays a crucial role in law enforcement, often being the deciding factor in whether a case goes to trial.

The review evidence provided by the police decide whether there is enough to charge someone and then represent the state in court.

Without the Crown Prosecution Service, even if the police gather evidence, there would be no formal process for prosecuting crimes.

Alex sees it differently though.

So let's have a look at what Alex has to say, My mum is a magistrate and they're really important because they handle smaller cases.

They're the first ones to make decisions on things like whether someone should be charged or what punishment they should get, like fines or community service.

By dealing with these cases, they help the court stay on top of things and make sure justice is served quickly.

Without them, the court system would be overloaded.

So each person or group has a specific role in law enforcement with varying levels of influence.

However, if any one group were removed, the law enforcement system would not function as efficiently.

Do you think this is true or false.

The police are the most important law enforcers because they're the only ones who deal directly with citizens who break the law.

So that's false.

The police do deal directly with citizens who break the law, however, other law enforcers do too, and that includes solicitors, barristers, and judges.

So we're gonna practise what we've learned now, and what I would like you to do is to consider which person or group has the most significant role in enforcing the law.

Going to use a diamond nine to rank them from most to least important, and you should be giving an explanation for your most and least significant role.

So you can see the shape here of a diamond nine, and I've given you the whole list of the different individuals and groups that have been involved in enforcing the law.

So we've got judges, magistrates, juries, police, Crown Prosecution Service, solicitors, barristers, probation service, and Parliament.

So you need now to put them into a diamond nine, deciding which is the most important and which is the least important.

Remembering to give your explanation for your most and least significant role.

So pause the video, give that a go, and when you're ready, come back and we can have a look together as to how that might have been done.

Okay, so your task was to consider which person or group has the most significant role in enforcing the law.

And your diamond nine might look different to this, but this is one example of a response you could give.

So you might have put the police at the top there, followed by the Parliament and Crown Prosecution Service.

And then we've got judge, magistrate and barristers in the middle and down towards least significant role, solicitors and probation.

And at the bottom there, jury.

And you might have given the following explanations for your most and least significant points.

So you might have ranked the police as the most significant.

You might have agreed with Lucas here saying that it's the most significant in enforcing the law because they're the first point of contact when a crime occurs.

They're the ones who investigate crimes, arrest suspects, and ensure public safety every day.

Without the police, it would be much harder to enforce laws and keep order in communities.

And at the bottom of our diamond nine, we had jury.

So you might have explained the least significant like this.

So I ranked the jury as the least significant because while they play an important role in deciding the outcome of the case, their involvement is limited to trials.

They only make decisions based on the evidence presented in court, and they don't have to do the same day-to-day influence or a responsibility in enforcing the law as the police do.

So here you've shown a distinct difference as to why you think one is more significant than the other.

You might have chosen different things to go at the top and the bottom of your diamond nine.

So here's an alternative answer that you might have put together.

So you might have ranked Parliament as the most significant in enforcing the law because they're responsible for creating, debating and passing the laws that govern society.

Their decisions directly shape the legal framework within which all other institutions, including the police operate.

Without Parliament's legislative role, laws would not exist to be enforced.

And then another example here, you might have put at the bottom of your diamond nine the least significant role as solicitors.

So I ranked solicitors as the least significant in enforcing the law because, although they play an essential role in providing legal advice and representing clients in court, their focus is more on defending or prosecuting individuals, rather than ensuring the law is upheld or creating a legal framework for enforcement.

So well done for giving that a go.

During today's lesson, we've looked at who enforces the law, and here's a summary of what we've learned.

There are a wide range of people and groups who enforce laws in England and Wales.

These include judges, magistrates, juries, police officers, Crown Prosecution Service or CPS, solicitors, barristers, probation officers and Parliament.

Each person or group has a specific role they have to follow to ensure laws are followed by citizens.

Some roles are more influential than others and some are more obvious than others.

However, they are all important within the justice system.