One thing which hasn’t changed since I first considered a career as a barrister is that, for somebody without any links to the legal profession, the Bar can seem an alienating place. Historically, as I observed in this book, barristers have been drawn from the narrowest social stratum, rendering the Bar woefully unrepresentative. These problems persist today.

Where there has been important change in recent years, however, is in the outreach work that is carried out by those in and with links to the legal profession, aimed at improving social mobility and making the Bar accessible to people from all backgrounds.

If you are intrigued by the idea of becoming a barrister, or of visiting that fate on somebody you know, below is a (non-exhaustive) list of charities, organisations, schemes and opportunities aimed at opening up the Bar to everybody, so that those standing up in court and representing people in legal proceedings better reflect the communities they serve.

It is a growing list. If you are part of or know of an organisation or scheme that is not listed below, which you would wish to be included, please let me know.

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The Bar Council, the representative body for barristers in England and Wales, offers a number of schemes for school and college students, including:

  • The Bar Placement Scheme allows sixth-form students to spend three days shadowing a barrister and to receive advocacy training from the Inns of Court College of Advocacy.
  • The Bar E-Mentoring scheme is intended to support students from underrepresented backgrounds who are interested in pursuing a career at the Bar.
  • If you would like a barrister to give a talk at your school, college or university, the Bar Council has a database of barrister volunteers.

Details of these are here: https://www.barcouncil.org.uk/becoming-a-barrister/school-students.html

The Bar Council also pairs disabled pupils and early practitioners with disabled senior mentors.

The Inns of Court each has their own social mobility programmes and scholarship schemes, summarised below:

Gray’s Inn

Inner Temple

 

Lincoln’s Inn

Middle Temple

Mentoring and Networking

10000 Black Interns https://www.10000blackinterns.com

AllAboutLaw Diversity https://www.allaboutlaw.co.uk/diversity

The Association of Disabled Lawyers https://www.disabledlawyers.co.uk/about-us

The Association of Women Barristers https://www.womenbarristers.com

Bar None (Western Circuit) https://westerncircuit.co.uk/bar-none/

Big Voice London https://www.bvl.org.uk

The Black Barristers’ Network https://www.blackbarristersnetwork.org.uk/our-work

The Black Lawyers Directory (Legal Gateway) https://www.bldlawyers.com/the_legal_gateway.html

BME Legal https://twitter.com/BME_Legal

Bridging The Bar https://bridgingthebar.org

Centre for Women’s Justice Mentoring Scheme for Aspiring Lawyers from Black, Asian and Minoritised Backgrounds https://www.centreforwomensjustice.org.uk/mentoring-scheme

City Disabilities https://citydisabilities.org.uk

The Chancery Bar Association https://www.chba.org.uk/for-members/mentoring-scheme/

The Commercial Bar Association https://www.combar.com/news/25th-anniversary-scholarship-scheme-2020/

The Criminal Bar Association https://www.criminalbar.com/resources/equality-and-diversity/mentoring-programmes/

Disability’s Not A Bar (Podcast) https://twitter.com/DisabilityNoBar

Guru Nanak Social Mobility Scholarship https://singhbarrister.co.uk/scholarship

InterLaw Diversity Forum https://www.interlawdiversityforum.org

The Kalisher Trust https://www.unitydiversityinlaw.co.uk

The Lemn Sissay Law Bursary https://www.socialsciences.manchester.ac.uk/connect/making-a-difference/equality-and-diversity/black-lawyers-matter/

Next Step Foundation https://www.nextstepeducation.org.uk/our-programme

Neurodiversity In Law http://neurodiversityinlaw.co.uk

Non-Russell Group Lawyers (NRGL) linkedin.comNRG Lawyers | LinkedIn

Queer Lawyers of Tomorrow http://www.queerlawyersoftomorrow.org

Rare Foundations: Law https://www.rarerecruitment.co.uk/foundations/law/index.html

The Social Mobility Foundation https://www.socialmobility.org.uk

Society of Asian Lawyers https://www.societyofasianlawyers.co.uk

Sutton Trust (Pathways to Law) https://www.suttontrust.com/our-programmes/pathways-to-law/

Unity Diversity in Law https://www.unitydiversityinlaw.co.uk

Urban Lawyers https://urbanlawyers.co.uk

Women In Criminal Law https://www.womenincriminallaw.com/mentoring

 

There are many, many more organisations and initiatives not listed above. Many barristers’ chambers have their own social mobility initiatives, offering funded work experience/mini-pupillage placements, providing mentoring schemes and bursaries, and attending local schools to speak directly to students. A number of universities also have their own mentoring and financial assistance schemes.