*/
Cheaper and more flexible routes to qualification have been mooted in a consultation published by the Bar Standards Board (BSB).
Mixing up the academic, vocational and pupillage stages is suggested in a paper that the BSB said could result in the “most sweeping reforms” in a generation.
Focus groups, comprising 51 people, including 21 barristers, set up to inform the paper, agreed that change is needed to address the cost, content and reputation of the Bar Professional Training Course (BPTC) and lack of pupillages.
One new barrister said: “The BPTC is actually exploitative. Providers don’t care about you, they care about the money.”
The BSB’s Director of Education and Training, Dr Simon Thornton-Wood, said, “We have reached a crucial stage of considering what the future of a more flexible system of training and qualifying might look like”.
The consultation closes on 30 October. A further paper on more concrete reforms will follow in 2016.
Speaking at the Australian Bar Association conference, Bar chairman Alistair MacDonald QC also called for an overhaul of the BPTC to make it cheaper and more flexible.
He said that he supported the idea of the director of the Council of Inns of Court, James Wakefield, to spilt the course into two parts, with the first knowledge-based element delivered online and the second practical part delivered over a shorter period than at present.
MacDonald said: “I have every reason to believe that this system will be accepted and will become available in the foreseeable future.”
Meanwhile, the Bar Council has brought forward the opening of the Pupillage Gateway – the online application system – from April to January so that candidates know if they have secured pupillage before committing to the BPTC.
Cheaper and more flexible routes to qualification have been mooted in a consultation published by the Bar Standards Board (BSB).
Mixing up the academic, vocational and pupillage stages is suggested in a paper that the BSB said could result in the “most sweeping reforms” in a generation.
Focus groups, comprising 51 people, including 21 barristers, set up to inform the paper, agreed that change is needed to address the cost, content and reputation of the Bar Professional Training Course (BPTC) and lack of pupillages.
One new barrister said: “The BPTC is actually exploitative. Providers don’t care about you, they care about the money.”
The BSB’s Director of Education and Training, Dr Simon Thornton-Wood, said, “We have reached a crucial stage of considering what the future of a more flexible system of training and qualifying might look like”.
The consultation closes on 30 October. A further paper on more concrete reforms will follow in 2016.
Speaking at the Australian Bar Association conference, Bar chairman Alistair MacDonald QC also called for an overhaul of the BPTC to make it cheaper and more flexible.
He said that he supported the idea of the director of the Council of Inns of Court, James Wakefield, to spilt the course into two parts, with the first knowledge-based element delivered online and the second practical part delivered over a shorter period than at present.
MacDonald said: “I have every reason to believe that this system will be accepted and will become available in the foreseeable future.”
Meanwhile, the Bar Council has brought forward the opening of the Pupillage Gateway – the online application system – from April to January so that candidates know if they have secured pupillage before committing to the BPTC.
The Bar Council faces both opportunities and challenges on our key areas this year
Girls Human Rights Festival 2025: a global gathering for change
Exclusive Q&A with Henry Dannell
Casey Randall of AlphaBiolabs discusses the benefits of Non-invasive Prenatal Paternity testing for the timely resolution of family disputes
By Louise Crush of Westgate Wealth Management
Have you considered being a barrister in the British Army? Here’s an insight into a career in Army Legal Services
Patrick Green KC talks about the landmark Post Office Group litigation and his driving principles for life and practice. Interview by Anthony Inglese CB
Sir Nicholas Mostyn, former High Court judge, on starting a hit podcast with fellow ‘Parkies’ after the shock of his diagnosis
‘Hard work and commitment can open doors. I believe that I am proof of that,’ says Senior Treasury Counsel Louise Oakley. She tells Anthony Inglese CB about her journey from Wolverhampton to the Old Bailey
What's it like being a legal trainee at the Crown Prosecution Service? Amy describes what drew her to the role, the skills required and a typical day in the life
Barbara Mills KC wants to raise the profile of the family Bar. She also wants to improve wellbeing and enhance equality, diversity and inclusion in the profession. She talks to Joshua Rozenberg KC (hon) about her plans for the year ahead
