As the Law Society awards the first scholarships under its diversity access scheme, Janet Paraskeva looks at various means of promoting greater access to the profession

Department for Constitutional Affairs minister David Lammy recently presented the first scholarships awarded by the Law Society’s diversity access scheme. It was an inspiring occasion and you could not help but feel that the future of the solicitors’ profession would be in good hands with these aspiring solicitors receiving their scholarships.



Janet Paraskeva: helping talented individuals

Between them, the individuals who received their awards last week had already demonstrated a wealth of talent and experience. Some of them had developed legal advice skills by working in law firms and volunteering in advice centres. Others had been involved in human rights projects, in Palestine, for example, or had worked in completely different fields - as teachers, nurses or civil servants, and in the private sector - and had gained valuable experience, giving them a perspective that many lawyers could never have.

All of them, in different ways, had achieved remarkable things, shown grit and steely determination, and a readiness to keep going in the face of adversity. They had demonstrated great capacity for hard work, sometimes putting up with financial hardship and disruption to their personal lives. Some have had to deal with problems associated with disability. And what they all had in common was immense resourcefulness and initiative.


The diversity access scheme originated in the germ of an idea about two years ago, and it was an idea that quickly flourished. The Law Society wanted to find a way of helping talented individuals overcome the obstacles that can sometimes stand in the way of a career in the law. We know that for some, getting a foothold in the legal profession can be a difficult, if not impossible, task. The number of minority ethnic students and women students has been growing in recent years, but there are, nonetheless, many able and talented people who come from families, schools or communities where the idea of being a lawyer is never really considered, or is just thought impossible.


For some people, illness or disability can stall their attempts to train in the law. For others, it is the financial burden that limits their ambition - training to be a lawyer these days requires a serious financial commitment. Obstacles such as these can seem insuperable. The Law Society wanted to do something to encourage those who have talent and ability, but who face these obstacles, to help them overcome them.


There are three main strands to the scheme: access to vacation placements for undergraduates seeking to pursue a legal career; mentoring support for legal practice course (LPC) students, where mentors assist students in researching job opportunities and making relevant contacts within the profession; and a scholarship scheme for about 20 LPC students offering free or subsidised places to those facing exceptional financial hardship.


The scheme was launched last October at the Solicitors’ annual conference. It received a great deal of generous support to fund the scholarships from the Law Society Charity, and also from a number of institutions that generously donated places for successful candidates - BPP, the Cardiff Law School, the College of Law and Nottingham Law School. We are very grateful for this support - without it the scholarship scheme could never have taken off so quickly.


The success of the diversity access scheme depends on active participation from members of the profession, and many solicitors made significant contributions. In particular, a number of Law Society Council members and others gave a great deal of time to the selection process, for which we are very grateful. But we are keen to involve many more firms and individuals in the future - both to provide financial support for the scholarships and for practical support for the scholars, through mentoring and work placements. We expect there to be more and more interest in the scheme from aspiring lawyers in the years to come as it becomes more widely known, and I hope we will be able to work with a growing cross-section of the profession in developing it.


The diversity access scheme aims to encourage greater diversity among entrants to the solicitors’ profession, but we are now also working on a way to recognise those firms that are themselves successfully promoting equality and diversity. In partnership with the Commission for Racial Equality, the Law Society is to establish a scheme to recognise the positive work being undertaken in many firms across England and Wales to promote racial equality and diversity, celebrating and rewarding good policies, and showcasing best practice. We hope to launch the award scheme later this year and to make the first awards in 2005.


It is vital for the solicitors’ profession that it reflects the rich diversity of British society and embraces people from every kind of background and experience. Provided there is ability, nothing should stand in the way of an ambition to become a lawyer.


I hope that these two schemes will help us ensure that this is the case. At the recent awards ceremony I met many impressive and inspiring individuals who told me that without the diversity access scheme scholarship they could not have continued with their studies. I am sure that they will become lawyers of which the solicitors’ profession can be very proud and I am glad the Law Society has been able to help them onto the next step of the ladder.


Janet Paraskeva is the Law Society Chief Executive