A pilot scheme to encourage law students into criminal defence work by training them for the Law Society's police station accreditation scheme has been so successful that it will run for a second year this October.

William Purcell, assistant solicitor at G T Stewart in London and a teaching fellow at Lancaster University, ran a free two-term programme for ten students from the College of Law last year.


Students were given seminars on police station work and attended police interviews with solicitors from G T Stewart. The scheme will be expanded to 15 students this year with the assistance of solicitors from London firms Murrays Partnership and Reid Sinclair & Co.


Mr Purcell said the students had found the pilot very useful in making early contact with criminal defence solicitors and building confidence in their skills. He added: 'I wanted to give students an insight into criminal litigation work at an early stage in their legal career, while they are still enthusiastic and idealistic. Because the training programme was free, it was open and accessible for students from a wide range of backgrounds.'


Sara Chandler, supervising solicitor at the College of Law's legal advice centre and Law Society Council member for the voluntary sector, said: 'The pilot has been very successful and proved a considerable enhancement for the students' CVs when looking for training contracts.'