Hardley School & Sixth Form BTEC Level 2 Diploma in Public Services
Unit 11: Law and its Impact on the Individual in Public Services
Hardley School & Sixth Form
Faculty of Business & Vocational Studies
BTEC Level 2 Diploma in
Public Services
Assignment Briefing Document
Unit 11: Law and its Impact on the Individual in Public Services
INSTRUCTIONS FOR LEARNERS
1. Your teacher(s) will tell you how long you have to complete the assignment and the access you may have to resources.
2. Read the Assignment carefully and make sure that you understand the work you should hand in and what is required of you. If you are uncertain, discuss it with your teacher(s).
3. The ASSIGNMENT requires you to work by yourself and to produce original work. You should not share your work with any other learners. For example, if you produce an illustration diagram electronically, you should not give it to another learner. Similarly, you should not accept and use such information from others. You are required to sign that the work submitted is your own.
4. If you work in a group at any stage, you must present your own responses to each task for assessment.
5. Information taken from sources for research, e.g. Internet and textbooks, must be identified and not presented as your own work. You should list the sources used.
6. Some tasks may require Observation Records/Witness Statements. Your teacher(s) will organise for these to be completed and you must attach these to your submitted work.
7. In presenting your final work, you should not include draft work or reference materials such as handouts, notes and leaflets, unless the tasks specifically ask you to do so.
8. Presentation of your work:
· Check that you have completed all tasks.
· Label work with the appropriate task/sub task number.
· Present tasks in the correct order.
· Label each page with your name and page number.
· Submit all electronic materials in paper format
· Clearly label video or audiotapes submitted as part of your assignment.
· All papers should be securely bound.
· The completed ASSIGNMENT should NOT be presented in plastic envelopes, a box file or a lever arch file.
BTEC Level 2 Diploma in Public Services
Unit 11: Law and its Impact on the Individual in Public Services
All UK residents are liable to the rules and conventions of the English legal system. All public services exist because of UK legislation, and they continue to be governed by parliament in the ways in which they function.
The first part of this unit will enable you to acquire an understanding of how common law originated, from the customs and norms of early communities over the last few centuries and how these have been supplemented by Acts of Parliament to give precise definitions and guidance on the type of punishment. With the introduction of statute came the additional problem of how the words were interpreted, which led to stated cases and decided cases being used by courts to assist the decision-making process.
You will follow the criminal legal process from offences committed, which lead to the arrest of a suspect, to the eventual trial and to the close of proceedings, conviction and subsequent sentencing.
The second part of the unit will enable you to investigate the categories of offences – as defined by the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005 (SOPAC). You will learn about the powers of arrest available to the police for the lawful apprehension of a suspect, the legal rights afforded to a suspect whilst in police custody through to their eventual appearance in court, and the rights of victims and witnesses who will be required to give evidence at any subsequent trial.
In the final part of this unit you will examine the judicial system, with an introduction to the parties involved in criminal cases – Attorney General, Director of Public Prosecutions, the categories of trial and the various types of courts – Crown Court, Magistrates Court, Youth Courts and the Court of Appeal.
Learning outcomes
On completion of this unit you should:
1 Understand the origins of common law and how criminal law has evolved
2 Know the codes of practice set out by the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 and subsequent amendments which apply to the rights of offenders throughout the judicial process
3 Know the powers given and the points to prove to support a successful prosecution
4 Understand the role of the prosecution, the defence and the courts.
YOUR ASSIGNMENT TASKS
Assignment 1: First steps in Criminal Law
Scenario
You work for a young persons advice centre that provides training and careers guidance. Your branch manager has asked you to produce a leaflet that would be of use to people that are considering joining the police or the legal profession. The purpose of the leaflet is to provide a general introduction to English law.
Task 1: The Evolution of English Law
You are to produce a factual leaflet that explains and illustrates how law has evolved from ancient common law based upon long held beliefs within a community of socially acceptable behaviour, to the current statutes enacted by Parliament. You must make sure that you:
· Include a definition of common law and statute law
· A timeline or flow chart showing the main historical developments of common law, showing the influence of customs and standards of behaviour including religious influences
· Include explanations of examples modern criminal laws that have their roots in common law
· An explanation of how the effects of crime on communities and individuals has influenced the evolution of the law
· An explanation of the impact of the media on the development of criminal law
· An explanation of the purpose of the statutes that are enacted by Parliament
This task will provide evidence for P1
Task 2: Stated and Decided Cases
Within your leaflet you are to include a section on stated cases and decided cases. You must:
· Explain what decided cases are
· Explain what decided cases are used for
· Explain the term ‘precedent’
· Explain what stated cases are
· Explain why stated cases are used
·
This task will provide evidence for P2
Presentation Guidelines
Your leaflet should be produced using appropriate word processing or desk-top publishing software, and must include all of the tasks listed above. You should include any relevant illustrations, diagrams, photographs, data, or quotations from people you have talked to. You should also include a bibliography of all books, websites and other sources that you have used and referred to. The leaflet must be written in your own words.
These tasks will provide evidence for P1 and P2
Grading Criteria
To achieve a pass, you must: / To achieve a merit, you must: / To achieve a distinction, you must:P1: discuss how common law has evolved from community norms and customs to present day legislation
P2: explain how decided cases and stated cases may give direction to current cases being tried in court /
N/A
/N/A
Deadline:
Assignment 2: Police Powers
You are a police officer working in an area where the police are not popular. You and your colleagues have been criticised and abused for being 'heavy-handed'. You have decided to hold a meeting with community leaders to clear up these misunderstandings.
Task:
You are to prepare and deliver a presentation for a group of community leaders explaining what powers the police have to deal with suspects. You must make sure that you outline the Codes of Practice set out by the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984, and subsequent amendments which apply to the rights of offenders throughout the judicial process. Specifically, you must make sure that you have addressed the following through sufficient coverage of PACE codes A-G:
· Powers of arrest: powers to stop, search and arrest; identification of a suspect; recording first descriptions; identification procedures; reasonable suspicion that an indictable offence has been committed
· Cautioning: at the time of arrest; before commencing an interview; tape or video recorded; arrested for further offences and prior to charging
· Suspect’s rights: grounds for arrest; detainee rights through out time in custody — detention times, welfare, food and drink, interviews, access to solicitor and/or appropriate adult, rights to telephone calls, letters and visitors
This task will provide evidence for P3 and P5 (part)
You should also analyse the powers available to the police when dealing with a suspect. You may wish to consider addressing the following questions:
· Are the rights of suspects protected by the PACE Codes of Practice?
· Do the PACE codes ensure that only valid evidence is obtained? How?
· Why do the PACE codes make sure that magistrates or judge are involved in serious decisions?
· Does PACE help protect the public?
· Why and how does PACE help ensure that the police are accountable?
This task will provide evidence for M1
You should also justify the use of police powers when dealing with suspects. You may wish to consider the following:
· Why are the powers are needed for tackling modern crime?
· Why are there are so many checks and balances in PACE?
This task will provide evidence for D1
Presentation Guidelines
You are to prepare and deliver a professional presentation using appropriate presentation techniques. It is strongly recommended that you use a data projector and presentation software such as "Microsoft Powerpoint" to enhance the quality and impact of your presentation. Your presentation will be witnessed by at least two members of staff, who will provide individual witness statements for your portfolio. Evidence of your presentation, such as a print-out of the slideshow must also be inserted into your portfolio.
This task will provide evidence for P3, P5 (part), M1 & D1
Grading Criteria
To achieve a pass, you must: / To achieve a merit, you must: / To achieve a distinction, you must:P3: identify powers available to the police to deal with suspects
P5: describe the rights afforded to a person held in police custody before and after charge / M1: analyse the powers available to police dealing with a suspect
/ D1: justify the use of police powers when dealing with suspects.
Deadline:
Assignment 3: Bail and going to Court
Scenario
You are a newly qualified solicitor, and have just undertaken your first case. Your clients are Rob Dabank and Nick Dacar who have just been arrested and are currently in custody for the theft of a number of computers from a nearby school. Rob is 25 years old and has two previous convictions for theft, one when he was a juvenile, and the other when he was 22 years old. Rob lives with his girlfriend and provides most of the household income through his job as a taxi driver. Nick is 15 years old, lives at home with his parents, and has a previous police caution for vandalism.
You have decided to write to Rob and Nick to provide them with an information pack, that you can then use with all your future clients, outlining the stages of the judicial process that will follow them being charged.
Task 1:
To accompany the information pack that you will send to Rob and Nick, you are to write them a covering letter. The purpose of this letter is to introduce yourself as their legal representative, and following them being formally charged, to advise them on matters relating to bail. You must:
· Explain the difference between conditional and unconditional bail
· Explain conditions of bail for both adult and juvenile offenders
· Explain when bail might be refused for both adult and juvenile offenders, and whether this might be a concern for Rob or Nick
This task will provide evidence for P5 (part) and M2
Presentation Guidelines
You should produce the letter in a word processing programme such as MsWord. You should make the letter appear professional by including letter heading and applying the usual conventions of formal letter writing. You must ensure that it is written in your own words.
Task 2:
You must now produce the ‘Going to Court’ information pack that you will send to Rob and Nick. You need to make sure that your information pack is informative and detailed, and includes relevant diagrams and illustrations to help Rob, Nick and your future clients understand all stages of the judicial process following them being formally charged with an offence.
You must make sure that you include all of the following:
The ‘Burden of Proof’
Within the first section of your information pack you must explain to your clients that under English law, a person is innocent of a crime unless they can be proved guilty ‘so as to be sure’. You must explain what this means, and how the prosecution try to achieve this through case building. You must make sure that you include explanations of;
· How the police and Crown Prosecution Service establish that an offence has been committed
· The gathering of evidence