Information for children

What is a witness?

If you are a witness, you know something important. You will be asked questions in court about what you know. This could be:

• what you heard
• things you saw
• what someone else told you.

Telling a court what you know is called giving evidence.

What is a court?

A court is a building with different rooms, including courtrooms, where you might give evidence. When adults are witnesses, they usually give evidence in a courtroom, but it’s different for kids.

Where do kids give evidence from?

If you are a witness, you will give evidence from a different room or building. You are not in the same room as the judge, the lawyers and the person who may have broken an important rule (called a law).

You talk to the people in the court through a screen – it's like making a video call.

Someone from the Child and Youth Witness Service (CYWS) will be with you when you give evidence.

You won't see the person who may have broken the law on the screen.

See the infographic 'Who will be in Court?' to learn more about the room the judge and lawyers will be in.

What happens before court?

Before you give evidence, someone from the CYWS will talk to you about what will happen when you give evidence. This will include:

• where you will give evidence
• who will be with you.

They will help you to feel calm and will explain some of the new words you will hear, like ‘accused’ and ‘law’.

How does the court make a decision?

The jury, the magistrate or the judge think about all the information they have heard and seen before making a decision.

They will think about what you have told them, and the things that other witnesses and lawyers have said.

If they decide the accused person did something wrong, they will say that they are ‘guilty’. If they have been found guilty, they will be called the offender.

The judge or magistrate will decide what happens to the offender. They might have to pay a fine, follow certain rules, or go to prison.