On the 7th of July 2008 the IV year Law group were taken to the Winchester Crown Court to witness some court cases. The four girls, Harriet, Caitlin, Alice and I, Jessica, were accompanied by Mr. Carpenter and Mrs. Charles. We left Alton Convent school promptly at 9 'o'clock and after stopping for a quick drink and a briefing about the background of the cases, we hurried into the public viewing area and took our seats. Not long after sitting down, we had to rise again for the judge who now entered the court.

Taking our seats in the Headquarters of the UN in New York was surreal. Being surrounded by the sandy brown paneling and microphones that light up when you talk only heightened the experience.

Peter Luff introduced an afternoon filled with speakers to debate the Security Council's use of the veto. Initially, we heard the history and possible future of the UN from the Indian UN representative, giving a necessary background to the veto and its initial purpose was. After this, there was an opportunity to ask questions, many of which broadened the topic discussed and made valid points. Questions of the UN's assistance in Zimbabwe and its stance on the Iraq war were asked.

Twenty fourth year GCSE Law students travelled to Winchester Combined Court in early July to hear a range of criminal cases. As Winchester is a Class 1 Crown court it often tries some of the most serious cases in the land, so we were very excited to have the chance of watching real live criminal trials.

Carole Abbott, the Management Support Officer, kindly agreed to show us inside Court 3 as it was not in session. Sitting on the seats normally reserved for barristers and solicitors, we heard her explain the roles of everyone involved in a criminal trial. As she was told that we were writing a piece of coursework at the moment on juries, she showed us their retiring room beneath the court itself. We thought it was small and somewhat claustrophobic.

The AS Law group recently spent a fascinating day exploring Legal London on foot.

Starting with a pre-arranged conducted tour of the Royal Courts of Justice in the Strand, the highlight proved to be exploring the famous, book lined Court 4 where the Lord Chief Justice regularly sits to hear many important cases. We then heard a number of appeals from various Crown Courts that were being reheard in the Court of Appeal, Criminal Division. Our law lessons suddenly came alive as we watched the judges use judicial precedent so adeptly.

Our AS Law group recently travelled to central London for the annual student conference. We listened to insightful, passionate and interesting speakers who are all well-known or political figures such as Imran Khan, who represented the parents of Stephen Lawrence, and Baria Ahmed, a barrister who told us about the advantages of alternative dispute resolutions.
The day gave us a very positive look at the law, and helped us to understand its fundamental importance.
Natalya & Emilia, LVI

On the regular annual visit to Winchester Combined Courts to see Crown court cases, this year’s GCSE law group decided to watch an attempted murder case where the defendant decided, at the last moment, to change his plea to guilty. The charge was then reduced to grievous bodily harm and we watched the recorder give stringent bail conditions.
We saw both a jury and witnesses being sworn in, an expert witness giving his testimony and a circuit judge giving directions to the jury before they retired to consider their verdict. “The best way to learn about how the law works is to watch it in action.

The AS Law students had a particularly fascinating day on their recent visit to Legal London.
Mrs Charles writes:
We sat in the famous Victorian Court 4 at the Royal Courts of Justice where the Lord Chief Justice normally presides over important criminal appeal cases. As we moved down the long gallery we heard legal arguments in the courts about the way a particular trial judge directed a jury, the major problems that result when there is a lengthy delay in any trial and the new provisions for allowing a jury to hear about a defendant’s bad character.
After walking through Lincoln’s Inn Fields and enjoying lunch in a nearby Starbucks we hurried on to the Old Bailey.

The GCSE Law students heard parts of two murder trials on the annual visit to Winchester Combined Courts, including hearing a forensic scientist describe the damage done to the victim's clothing during a fatal knife attack. Following this account the defendant took the witness stand and the students saw and heard first-hand the effect this had on the victim's family. We later found out that the jury had found the defendant guilty of manslaughter, rather than murder.

Ellie B., Stephanie H. and Rachel P. of the sixth form went with Mrs Charles to the Royal Courts of Justice on the 23rd of March to watch trial procedures as part of their Law AS level. Much of the morning was spent in a Criminal Division Court watching Mrs Justice Hallet deal with a mentally disturbed patient attempting to block the use of psychiatric reports during sentencing for a manslaughter conviction. After lunch the group moved on to the Old Bailey, and after stringent security checks were allowed to observe witnesses giving evidence in two murder trials. The entire day proved to be ve

With a schedule of the day’s court list in our hands the Fourth Year GCSE Law group set off to Winchester Crown Court. The cases included the infamous Markham murder trial in front of The Honourable Mr Justice Morland; fraud case; unlawful wounding; attempted murder; affray trial and a manslaughter case.
We were greeted at the entrance by Mrs Bryne, a court official, who gave each of us a packet of leaflets, explained courtroom etiquette and showed us a small courtroom.
Firstly we watched the trial of the Starling brothers who were accused of attempted murder. It was fascinating to see how the prosecution barrister revealed to that the witness might be lying and the atmosphere grew very tense.