A number of pupils recently discovered what employment in the legal sector entails.

Seven students from Aureus School in Didcot took part in this year’s Magistrates’ Court Mock Trial Competition.

The event was held at Oxford Crown Court on March 14 as part of a scheme designed to give young people hands-on exposure to the legal system.

Nikki Nicholls, head of history and ethics at Aureus School, which forms part of the GLF Schools multi-academy trust, explained that the students were required to conduct a trial within the Crown Court setting.

This provided them with a valuable opportunity to develop their public speaking and research skills, build confidence, and learn about how Britain’s justice system operates.

The school hopes this experience might encourage certain pupils to consider legal professions in years to come.

The team competed against eight other schools and took on roles including barristers, witnesses, legal advisers, ushers, defendants, and magistrates.

The competition, run by Young Citizens, is open to participants between 12 and 14 years old from state-funded schools across England, Wales, and Northern Ireland.

Every team receives a case file to review before the competition and then argues their case in an actual courtroom environment, with one school presenting the prosecution side and the other the defence.

This represented the second time Aureus School has participated in the competition.

Year 8 student Nathanial Cole was awarded the Highly Commended Legal Advisor trophy.