The European Programme for Human Rights Education for Legal Professionals “HELP” of the Council of Europe continues to play a key role and make a significant positive impact in Member States. On Saturday 14th April 2018, students from the School Of Law at the University Of Glasgow in Scotland presented an afternoon of human rights education to over 200 Members of the Scottish Youth Parliament (MSYPs) using materials developed by the HELP programme. The MSYPs range from age 14 to 25 and are a democratically elected representative to a parliament for young persons in Scotland. The Scottish Youth Parliament was established on the 30th June 1999 in order to represent Scotland’s young people. The vision for Scotland is of a nation that actively listens to and values the meaningful participation of its children and young people. This current Scottish Youth Parliamentary year seeks to further the human rights of young persons living in Scotland with the ‘Right Here, Right Now’ campaign.

Using resources developed by the HELP programme, the volunteers from the School of Law were able to provide contemporary workshops with the aim of furthering the human rights cause and enabling the youngsters to understand the rationale of the European Court of Human Rights in deciding cases. The MSYPs were introduced to the concepts of authoritative case law, the Margin of Appreciation and the ECHR as a Living Instrument. The volunteer tutors stated that the HELP materials were of a high standard, were easy to use and stimulated a high level of debate.