Lesson video

Hello, everybody.

My name's Mrs. Hastings.

Welcome to today's lesson.

I'm really looking forward to learning with you and for us to make excellent progress in today's lesson.

So today's lesson is from the unit, "Why was the struggle for the vote important today?" And the lesson title is, "Should 16 and 17-year-olds be allowed to vote in elections?" Today we will be able to explain arguments for and against allowing 16 and 17-year-olds to vote in general elections, and be able to formulate my own opinion on the issue.

So today there are some important ground rules that we need to adhere to, because this is a topic that is open for debate, and there are lots of different ideas and opinions about it.

So first of all, we need to listen to others.

It's okay to disagree with each other, but we should listen properly before making assumptions or deciding how to respond.

When disagreeing, challenge a statement, not the person.

Respect privacy.

We can discuss examples, but do not use names or descriptions that identify anyone, including ourselves.

No judgement.

We can explore beliefs and misunderstandings about a topic without fear of being judged.

And choose level of participation.

Everyone has the right to choose not to answer a question or join discussion.

We never put anyone on the spot.

So here are our key words in today's lesson that we're going to be coming across frequently.

Firstly, vote.

This is a formal way of making a choice or decision.

Election, the voting process to select a person for a public position.

And general election, when the citizens of a country, the electorate, vote to elect a new government.

A general election in the UK happens at least every five years.

In our lesson today on, "Should 16 and 17-year-olds be allowed to vote in elections?" there are two parts to our learning cycle.

Firstly, we're going to explore the question, what rights do 16 and 17-year-olds already have? And secondly, we're going to learn should under 18s be allowed to vote or not.

So let's get on with our first learning cycle.

What rights do 16 and 17-year-olds already have? Citizens in the UK can vote in many different types of elections.

Have a think.

Maybe have a quick discussion with the person sat next to you.

How many different types of elections can you name that happen in the UK? So, in the UK, we have general elections.

As I've already explained with the key words, these happen in the UK every five years.

We have local elections.

These could be borough elections or district council elections or county council elections.

There's quite a few different types of local elections that you can have.

Mayoral elections.

So if you live in a city, you may be able to vote for your mayor.

So for example, if you live in London, we have London mayoral elections.

And police and Crime Commissioner elections, this is an election for the person who you want to represent you in the police and crime commissioner role.

To be able to vote in an election in the UK, you must meet the eligibility criteria.

So certain criteria that you have to have in order to be able to vote.

And actually this can be different for different elections, but there are three main categories.

Firstly, your citizenship, whether you're a citizen of that particular place or country, your age, and where you live in the UK.

So for citizenship, you need to have British Republic of Ireland or Commonwealth citizenship.

That means that you need to be a citizen of one of those places.

If you hold EU citizenship, you can vote in all elections that take place, apart from general elections.

Age.

In Scotland and Wales, you can vote in some local and devolved government elections at 16.

So if you are 16, and you live in Scotland, and you're a Scottish citizen, then you can vote in the Scottish Parliament elections In England and Northern Ireland, you can register to vote at 16, but you have to be 18 to be able to vote, and that goes for all of the elections in England and Northern Ireland.

In the UK General elections, everyone has to be over the age of 18, whether you live in Scotland, Wales, England, or Northern Ireland.

For the UK general elections, you have to be over the age of 18.

So across the UK, you have to be 18 to vote in general elections.

Where you live.

So depending on where you live in the UK, you can vote in the following elections.

In the UK, you can vote in general elections.

If you live in Wales, England, Scotland, Northern Ireland, you can vote in a general election as long as you've met the age and citizenship criteria.

In London, you can vote in mayor and London Assembly elections.

Other regions in England also have mayoral elections.

In England and Wales, you can vote in police and crime commissioner elections.

In Scotland, you can vote in Scottish Parliament elections.

In Wales, you can vote in the Senedd Cymru the Welsh Parliament elections.

And in Northern Ireland, you can also vote in the Northern Ireland Assembly elections.

So let's check our understanding.

True or false.

You do not have to meet all three criteria to be eligible to vote in elections in the UK.

So you do not have to meet all three criteria to be eligible to vote in elections in the UK.

Is that true or false? It is false.

Why? You have to meet the criteria for all three, citizenship, age, and where you live, to be eligible to vote in the UK.

If you live in Scotland, at what age can you vote in Scottish Parliament and local elections? Is it A, 16, B, 17, or C, 18? If you live in Scotland, at what age can you vote in Scottish Parliament and local elections? A, B, or C? It is 16.

Well done if you got that right.

So at 16, you can vote in Scottish Parliament and local elections if you are living in Scotland.

You cannot vote in a general election until you are 18.

However, there are many things that you can do once you turn 16.

Can you think of any? What can you do when you turn 16 legally? Have a think.

Have a discussion with the person who sat next to you maybe.

When you turn, 16 you can join the armed forces with your parents' consent, you can register with a GP, you can open a bank account, you can register to vote, you can apply for a passport, you can have consensual sex, and you can change your names.

All of those things you can do when you turn 16 legally.

There are some other things, but those are some of the really key ones.

But there are also many things that you can't do, you cannot do until you turn 18.

Can you think of any of these? What can't you do until you're 18? So until you're 18, you can't get married.

In Scotland, you can get married at 16 with parental consent.

But in England, Wales, Northern Ireland, you can't get married until you're 18.

Until you're 18, you can't serve on a jury, you can't go and get a tattoo, you can't buy cigarettes and tobacco, you can't buy and drink alcohol in a bar, you can't buy fireworks, you can't vote in a general election and you can't stand for election as a Member of Parliament or local councillor.

So until you are 18, you can't do any of those things.

When you're 18, you are legally able to do those things.

So let's check our understanding of what rights 16 and 17-year-olds already have in the UK.

So which of the following can you legally do at 16 in England? Can you A, register to vote, B, get married, C, vote in a general election? Which of the following can you legally do at 16 in England, A, B, or C? It is A, register to vote.

Well done if you got that right.

You can't get married or vote in a general election in England until you are 18.

In Scotland and Wales, you can vote in some elections at 16.

However, in England and Northern Ireland, you must be 18 to vote in any election.

So the task that I'd like you to complete for the learning cycle, "What rights to 16 and 17-year-olds already have," is to read the list below, tick the things you can legally do in England at the age of 16.

So what can you legally do at the age of 16? Tick the ones that are correct.

Change your name, get married, apply for a passport, vote in a general election, buy a lottery ticket, get a tattoo, register with a GP, register to vote, and serve on a jury.

And then secondly, I would like you to discuss the following with a partner.

What voting rights do 16-year-olds have in Scotland and Wales? And what voting rights do 16-year-olds have in England and Northern Ireland? Pause the video so that you can complete those two tasks.

Well done on completing those two tasks.

So let's look at the first task.

I asked you to read the list below and tick the things you can legally do in England from the age of 16.

So you should have ticked the following actions.

Change your name, apply for a passport, register with a GP, and register to vote.

Well done.

Second task was to discuss the following with a partner.

What voting rights the 16-year-olds have in Scotland and Wales? And what voting rights the 16-year-olds have in England and Northern Ireland.

So during your discussions, you might have said, in Scotland, 16-year-olds have the right to vote in Scottish Parliament and local elections.

Similarly, in Wales, 16-year-olds can vote in the Senedd Cymru, Welsh Assembly elections.

However, they cannot vote in general elections.

And you might have also said, in England and Northern Ireland, you are only allowed to register to vote at 16.

You do not have the right to vote in any local or general elections until you are 18.

So onto the second part of our learning cycle today, should under 18s be allowed to vote or not? We're going to be deliberating.

And to be deliberative means to carefully consider and discuss a topic.

So we are going to be thinking about the different viewpoints and weighing up those viewpoints to put forward our own opinion and think about our own opinion.

So during a deliberative discussion, we take time to consider different viewpoints and weigh all the relevant information before we make up our minds.

So let's start having a look at some of the relevant information.

So let's consider the following information about voting age before deciding your opinion on the question, should under 18s be allowed to vote? The voting age in general elections has been 18 since 1969.

This was lowered from 21 years old, which was set in 1695.

Currently, 13 countries globally allow 16 and 17-year-olds to vote, though not always in a general election.

So for example, we've already learned that Scotland and Wales allow voting in local elections and in the devolved government elections, but they don't allow voting in the general election for the rest of the UK.

So only for local and devolved government elections in Scotland and Wales.

The issue of voting at 16 is divisive.

There are complex arguments and divided public opinion.

Major political parties have traditionally held different views on lowering the voting age to 16.

For example, the Conservative Party has traditionally opposed lowering the voting age.

The Labour Party has traditionally supported it, and they included it in their 2024 election manifesto.

The Liberal Democrats have consistently supported lowering it since 2001 and included it in their election manifestos as well.

A manifesto is a document which sets out the aims and intentions by a political party and it's plans to achieve these goals if they were to win an election.

So the fact that the Labour Party and Liberal Democrats have consistently supported lowering the voting age of 16 on their manifestos is really significant when it comes to them voting in a general election.

So let's check our understanding so far.

How many countries currently allow 16 and 17-year-olds the right to vote? Is it A, nine, B, 13, or C, 15? How many countries allow 16 and 17-year-olds the right to vote? A, B, or C? It is 13.

Well done if you got that right.

Which political party has not traditionally supported lowering the voting age to 16? Is it A, the Conservative Party, B, the Labour Party, or C, Liberal Democrats? So which political party has not traditionally supported lowering the voting age, A, B, or C? It is A, the Conservative Party.

Well done if you got that right.

The Conservative Party have not traditionally supported lowering the voting age to 16.

What could the arguments for giving 16-year-olds the right to vote be? Can you have a think and a discussion with the person sat next to you? What could the arguments for giving 16-year-olds the right to vote be? So there are several arguments about giving 16-year-olds the right to vote.

At 16, you gain many rights and responsibilities which are affected by political decisions.

Maybe we've seen privacy and consider privacy, all of the activities that are affected by politics.

And at 16, you are legally allowed to do some things that you weren't allowed to do at 15, and therefore perhaps you should have your say.

Citizenship classes provide the necessary political knowledge needed to make informed decisions.

So by the very fact that you are learning this lesson, you are undertaking citizenship classes and therefore you are becoming really informed and thoughtful about voting.

Lowering the voting age could boost voter turnout and focus attention on youth issues.

And at 16, political party members can vote in leadership contests.

So you can become a youth member of a political party and actually have a vote in who is the leader of that political party.

And actually, what that means is if you are voting for the leader, and it is when there is not an election happening, say for example a political party has decided to get rid of its leader, but it's in power, it's already the government.

If you vote in a leadership contest in that political party, and that party is in government, essentially, you are voting for who takes over as prime minister.

And voting is a basic human rights.

We have seen previously and talked about human rights and political rights, and it is a basic human right.

What could the arguments against giving 16-year-olds the right to vote be? Again, have a think.

Have a quick discussion with the person sat next to you.

What could the arguments against giving 16-year-olds the right to vote be? So again, there are several arguments against giving 16-year-olds the right to vote.

Firstly, at 18, people are legal adults and act independently, aligning with many countries' voting age.

So there are lots of countries where the voting age is 18.

There are only 13 countries where the voting age is lower than that, and not always in general elections.

At 16, many people still live at home and could face influence from parents, teachers, and obviously, more recently, the rise of social media can have a massive impact on influencing your voter behaviour.

Citizenship education isn't consistent across all schools.

So perhaps there will be some people who are well informed and other people who are less well informed.

A survey by an important pollster YouGov found 51% of people opposed lower the voting age to 16, and only 26% supported it.

Young people can be seen to lack life experience for informed voting.

They're often still at school, haven't really had much experience outside school, and therefore perhaps lack the kind of life experience needed to be informed voters.

So let's check our understanding.

Which of the following is an argument for giving 16-year-olds the right to vote? A, at 16, you gain more legal rights and responsibilities than before you turn 16.

B, young people can be seen to lack the life experience needed for informed voting.

And C, most 16-year-olds still live at home and may be influenced by parents, teachers, or social media.

Which of the following is an argument for giving 16-year-olds the right to vote? It is A.

Well done if you got that right.

At 16, you gain more legal rights and responsibilities than before you turn 16.

This is an argument for giving 16-year-olds the right to vote.

So the task that I'd like you to complete first of all is to organise the arguments into the table below.

So I'm going to put up several arguments for and against giving 16 and 17-year-olds the right to vote, and you need to organise them into the two sides of the table.

So arguments for giving 16 and 17-year-olds the right to vote on one side and arguments against giving 16 and 17-year-olds the right to vote on the other side.

The arguments I'd like you to organise are: At 16, you gain more legal rights and responsibilities.

Young people can be seen to lack the life experience needed to make informed voting decisions.

Many political decisions affect 16-year-olds.

Giving 16-year-olds a vote would make politicians focus on issues important to young people.

Surveys show that people want to keep the voting age at 18.

And many 16-year-olds still live at home and may be easily influenced.

So organise those arguments into the two sides of the table.

Pause the video and complete that task now.

Well done for completing that task.

So I ask you to organise the arguments into table below.

Your table should have looked like this.

Arguments for giving 16, 17-year-olds the right to vote.

At 16, you gain more legal rights and responsibilities.

Many political decisions affect 16-year-olds.

Giving 16-year-olds the vote would make politicians focus on issues important to young people.

And then on the arguments against giving 16 and 17-year-olds the right to vote, you should have young people can be seen to lack the life experience needed to make informed voting decisions.

Surveys show that people want to keep the voting age at 18, and many 16-year-olds still live at home and may be easily influenced.

Now onto the second task.

Consider the statement and offer your opinion.

16 and 17-year-olds should be allowed to vote in all elections.

Mark how far you agree with the statement on the judgement line.

Disagree at one end and agree at the other.

How strongly do you agree or disagree? Mark your view and your opinion on that line.

And then justify your answer by stating how far you agree or disagree with the statement, giving at least two reasons to support your decision, and giving specific examples to support your decision.

So pause the video and complete that task now.

Well done for completing that task.

Hopefully, you enjoyed it and had a good think about whether or not under 18-year-olds should be allowed to vote or not.

So you answer could look something like this.

If you went towards the agree end of the judgement line, you may have justified your answer by saying something like, "I strongly agree that 16 and 17-year-olds should be allowed to vote in all elections.

At 16, there are many things you are legally allowed to do.

For example, joining the armed forces and having consensual sex.

If 16-year-olds are allowed to have these responsibilities, then they should also have a say in the decisions that impact these responsibilities.

Equally, there are 13 countries who already allow 16 and 17-year-olds to vote.

This includes Scotland and Wales, where 16-year-olds can vote in Parliament and local elections.

Therefore, this right should be extended to general elections in the UK." However, you may have put your opinion towards the disagree end of the line.

And if you did, you may have said something like this to justify your opinion.

"I firmly disagree with the idea of giving 16 and 17-year-olds the right to vote in all elections.

Young people often lack life experience needed to make informed voting decisions.

For example, it's only when you reach 18 that you are considered an adult and don't need parental permission for many important things like getting married.

Furthermore, most 16-year-olds still live at home, and so their decision may be influenced by parents, teachers, or social media.

Therefore, this suggests that 16-year-olds are not ready to have the responsibility of voting in general elections." So in summary, should 16 and 17-year-olds be allowed to vote in elections.

UK citizens can vote in elections if they meet the eligibility criteria, which generally includes citizenship, age, and residency.

In the UK, you can't vote in a general election until you're 18.

But in Wales and Scotland, you can vote in some elections at 16.

At 16, you can join the armed forces and get a passport.

But other things like getting a tattoo or getting marriage, you can't do until you're 18.

The discussion on lowering the voting age to 16 is complex and can be divisive.

Supporters might argue it could boost voter turnout and highlight youth issues, while opponents point out that 18 is the legal age of adulthood and aligns with many other countries' voting ages.

Thank you so much for joining me in today's lesson.

I really hope that you've enjoyed it.

I hope that you've learned a lot, and I hope that you've been able to deliberate and consider very carefully the arguments for and against giving 16 and 17-year-olds the right to vote.

I look forward to seeing you again soon.