Your Rights and Responsibilities Your Rights Responsibilities Lesson

Your Rights and Responsibilities

Your Rights & Responsibilities Lesson Objectives By the end of this lesson you will be able to … • Explain at what age young people have a variety of legal rights and responsibilities. • Identify ways in which various laws affect your life. 2 © Young Citizens

Your Rights & Responsibilities At what age can you Buy cigarettes 18 It is illegal to sell cigarettes, e-cigarettes/e-liquid, tobacco or cigarette papers to anyone under the age of 18. Since 1 July 2007 smoking had been banned in all enclosed public places in England including pubs, bars, restaurants and workplaces. 3 © Young Citizens

Your Rights & Responsibilities At what age can you Drive a car on a public road 17 In order to drive in the UK you must hold a valid driving licence. You can apply for a provisional driving license when you are 15 and 9 months. However, you cannot legally drive a car until you are 17 (or 16 if you have long term ill-health or disability and receive a Personal Independence Payment). You can drive a moped at 16. 4 © Young Citizens

Your Rights & Responsibilities At what age can you Drink alcohol in a pub 16 In the UK it is illegal to sell alcohol to anyone under the age of 18. Under the licensing act 2003 under 16 s can enter a pub as long as they are accompanied by someone over the age of 18. At 16 you are allowed to drink beer, cider or wine as long as you are eating a meal and it is purchased by someone 18 or over. 5 © Young Citizens

Your Rights & Responsibilities At what age can you Vote in an election 18 In England, Ireland Wales you must be 18 to vote in local and general elections, but in Scotland the minimum age to vote in Scottish parliamentary and local elections is 16. 6 © Young Citizens

Your Rights & Responsibilities At what age can you Get a tattoo 18 The Tattooing of Minors Act 1969 makes it illegal for anyone to tattoo you if you are under the age of 18, even if you are accompanied by a parent. 8 © Young Citizens

Your Rights & Responsibilities At what age can you Get a job 13 (part time) There are certain areas of work that are exempt from this e. g. television, theatre and modelling. There a number of restrictions in place on when and where children under the age of 16 can work. For example they cannot work before 7 am or after 7 pm or for more than 4 hours without at least a one hour break. Local bylaws also set restrictions for the type of work children can do, these can vary from one area of the country to the next. 8 © Young Citizens

Your Rights & Responsibilities At what age can you Serve on a jury 18

Your Rights & Responsibilities At what age can you Have sex 16 Under the Sexual Offences Act 2003 you must be 16 years of age before you can legally agree to have sex. This is the same regardless of gender or sexual orientation of a person and whether the sexual activity is between people of the same or different gender. 10 © Young Citizens

Your Rights & Responsibilities At what age can you Be convicted of a criminal offence 10 The age of criminal responsibility in England Wales is 10 years old. This means that children under 10 can’t be arrested or charged with a crime. Children under the age of 10 who commit crime can be given a Local Child Curfew or a Child Safety Order. Crimes committed by children aged 10 to 17 are dealt with through youth courts. Young people aged 18 are treated as adults. In Scotland the age of criminal responsibility is 8 and the age at which a child can be prosecuted in a criminal court is 12 (if a child between 8 and 11 breaks the law their behaviour is addressed by a Children’s Hearing). 11 © Young Citizens

Your Rights & Responsibilities At what age can you Join the armed forces 16 In order to enlist in the armed forces you must be 16 years of age, though you can start the application process at 15 and 7 months. If you are under 18 you will need parental consent. 9 © Young Citizens

Your Rights & Responsibilities Plenary Q: What surprised you most about what we discussed today? Q: Are there any laws that you particularly agree or disagree with? Q: How do the laws we discussed impact your life? 13 © Young Citizens