A new citizenship resource has been launched, which aims to teach teenage pupils about animal rights.

Animals and the Law, produced by the RSPCA, is intended for key stage 3 pupils. Its five units enable pupils to debate the rights and wrongs of dog shows, pet ownership and using animals in circuses.

It also encourages them to lead their own animal welfare campaigns on strongly-felt issues.

The resource’s first unit recommends that pupils create an animal welfare charter, outlining animals’ needs, and the value of laws that protect these needs.

“Dogs and the law” focuses on how dogs respond to treatment by their owners. The RSPCA recently withdrew its support for Crufts, the prestigious dog show, because of breeding concerns.

Other units include “pets and the law”, concerned with keeping exotic creatures, and “circus animals”.

And “campaigning for change” recommends that pupils lobby on an animal welfare issue.

www.rspca.org.uk.