Should the voting age be reformed?
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can explain what is meant by voting reform and identify arguments for and against whether the voting age should be 16 across the UK or not.
Key learning points
- Voting reform refers to changes made to voting laws or systems. These changes aim to make the democratic process fairer.
- In Scotland, the voting age was reduced to 16 years old by the Scottish Elections (Reduction of Voting Age) Act 2015.
- The Senedd and Elections Act 2020 extended the franchise to 16 and 17 year olds in Wales.
- Supporters say 16 year olds are responsible and politically educated. It could boost long term voter turnout.
- Critics say 16 year olds lack experience, are easily influenced and may not have enough political literacy to vote.
Keywords
Voting reform - the process by which the voting laws are modified and shaped over time to better reflect the social values that society feels are important
Democracy - a system of government in which citizens vote in regular, fair elections for representatives who then make laws and decisions on their behalf
Franchise - the right to vote in public elections
Common misconception
All nations within the United Kingdom have the same voting age for all elections.
In May 2025 in Scotland and Wales, apart from UK general elections, you can vote in public elections when you are 16 years old. Whereas in England and Northern Ireland you cannot vote until you are 18 years old.
Teacher tip
If there is scope in the lesson, you could introduce a deliberative debate about voting reform in general or reform of the voting age.
Content guidance
Depiction or discussion of discriminatory behaviour
Depiction or discussion of sensitive content
Supervision
Adult supervision recommended
Licence
Lesson video
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Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Why are Youth Councils important to local democracy?
Q2.Match the word to its action.
asking for views before making a decision
taking organised action to bring about a change
talking to decision-makers to discuss concerns
Q3.What is the most appropriate topic to be discussed in a Youth Council meeting?
Q4.Haringey Youth Council's participation in local democracy can be shown through their involvement in Youth Takeover...
Q5.What is the purpose of local democracy?
Q6.Which party gained the highest number of council seats in the local elections in May 2025?
Assessment exit quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Match the word with its definition.
the legal right to vote in public elections
changes made to voting laws or systems to improve fairness
a system where local citizens vote for representatives in their area
a group led by young people that represents their views
Q2.In what year did the Senedd and Elections Act extend the right to vote to 16- and 17-year-olds in Wales?
Q3.Supporters use which reason for lowering the voting age to 16?
Q4.Some people believe that 16-year-olds should not vote because they lack life and independence.
Q5.Which law gave 16-year-olds the right to vote in Scotland?
Q6.Voting reform aims to make the democratic process more .
To help you plan your 9 citizenship lesson on: Should the voting age be reformed?, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 9 citizenship lesson on: Should the voting age be reformed?, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs.
The starter quiz will activate and check your pupils' prior knowledge, with versions available both with and without answers in PDF format.
We use learning cycles to break down learning into key concepts or ideas linked to the learning outcome. Each learning cycle features explanations with checks for understanding and practice tasks with feedback. All of this is found in our slide decks, ready for you to download and edit. The practice tasks are also available as printable worksheets and some lessons have additional materials with extra material you might need for teaching the lesson.
The assessment exit quiz will test your pupils' understanding of the key learning points.
Our video is a tool for planning, showing how other teachers might teach the lesson, offering helpful tips, modelled explanations and inspiration for your own delivery in the classroom. Plus, you can set it as homework or revision for pupils and keep their learning on track by sharing an online pupil version of this lesson.
Explore more key stage 3 citizenship lessons from the How can young people play an active role in democracy? unit, dive into the full secondary citizenship curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.