You're absolutely right - for the 'Junior' section of any competition, a truly 'level playing field' is not appropriate.
Within the confines of our four-round 'in-house' competition, the issue seldom arises. We no longer (sadly) have any junior members. When we did, he was very nearly a senior, and his modelling output could be judged alongside that of his seniors without disadvantaging him at all.
HBowever, at our annual show - The Newark Expo - there is a thriving junior entry. We attempt to make this as fair as possible in three ways :
a) For junior entries, the age of the entrant is added to the card placed next to the entry on the table. This enables the judges to assess the quality of the work against the age of the entrant.
b) There is no recommended judging procedure for the junior class. We use judges that we trust, and leave them to exercise their judgement.
c) Every entrant in the Junior Classes receives a certificate of entry and achievement, and - sponsors willing - a free kit.
So far, we have not had any problems with the junior classes at the show, so the system appears to work.
I hope this has been of help. Thanks for visiting our forum.
Ian Crawford
(Club Secretary, CC&BW and General Dogsbody)