CILEX scholarships and bursaries programme application deadline nears

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Applications for the CILEX Foundation’s scholarship and bursary programme are due to close on Friday 29 July.

Having launched in 2021, the CILEX Lawyer Scholarship is a targeted programme worth up to £12,500 which covers the cost of studying for the CILEX Professional Qualification (CPQ) and becoming a fully qualified CILEX lawyer. The CILEX Foundation opened its 2022 programme for applicants in May.

To be eligible for the scholarship, applicants must demonstrate that their finances and circumstances make it difficult for them to access a professional legal qualification. The scholarship aims to support individuals and groups who are underrepresented in the legal profession and/or are from a socially disadvantaged background.

Eligible groups include:

• young carers;
• people with a protected characteristic as set out in the Equality Act 2010;
• those who can provide previous evidence of free school meals; or
• people with a history of being in care.

The bursary programme provides funding for training and development for existing CILEX members who experience financial difficulties that mean costs are an obstacle to them securing a qualification.

Of the 22 scholarships on offer, three are Millicent Grant scholarships. The Millicent Grant scholarship is open to those from Black, Asian or other ethnic minority backgrounds.

You can find out more about Millicent Grant’s journey into the profession and the scholarship via this LCN Says: ‘The law is for the many, not the few’.

Katie Thurston, who won a scholarship in 2021, said: “I spent time in care as a young adult and had a difficult family life after I left. When I saw the scholarship was open to candidates like me, I went for it.

“Finding out I had been successful was life changing. Over the years I had lost all faith that advancing in a legal career was possible for me as I simply didn’t have the financial means to pay for study.

“CILEX has opened up the prospect that I can qualify as a lawyer without a law degree and take my career as far as I want it to go.”

Speaking on behalf of the CILEX Foundation board of trustees, chair HHJ Marc Dight CBE says: “We want to see talented, aspiring lawyers from a range of different backgrounds coming into the legal profession. Working to build a legal sector that represents the society it serves is central to what CILEX is about and the scholarship and bursary programme plays and important part in that.

“The CPQ offers a route to a successful legal career to those with or without a university degree and the targeted support offered by the Foundation helps further remove barriers for future legal professionals from disadvantaged backgrounds. We would like to encourage those who may have thought a legal career was out of their reach to apply.”

Applicants interested in the CILEX Lawyer Scholarship have until Friday 29 July to submit their applications.

Find out more about the CPQ via CILEX’s LawCareers.Net page.