Access to the profession

Social Mobility Business Compact

As part of the Coalition Government’s Social Mobility Strategy, Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg launched a business compact, asking businesses to help to ensure that everyone has a fair opportunity to fulfil their potential, regardless of the circumstances of their birth.

The Bar Council signed up to the compact, which calls on businesses to:

1. Support communities and local schools:

• Participate in mentoring schemes for young people, allow staff time off and reward them for getting involved and enable schools and businesses to work together, and
• Encourage staff at least once a year to talk about their careers as part of a programme to raise aspiration and build knowledge about the world of work.

2. Improve skills and create jobs by providing opportunities for all young people to get a foot on the ladder:

• Advertise work experience opportunities in local schools rather than filling them through informal networks, and
• Offer internships openly and transparently and provide financial support to ensure fair access.

3. Improve quality of life and wellbeing by recruiting openly and fairly, ensuring non-discrimination:

• Including increased use of name-blank and school-blank applications where appropriate.

Click here to read more about the compact on the Deputy Prime Minister's website.

Gateways to the Professions

The Government's Gateways to the Professions initiative was set up by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills to tackle the issues and barriers faced by talented students from low income families seeking to enter the professions through higher education.

As part of this initiative, the Bar Council has signed up to the voluntary Best Practice Code for High-Quality Internships, which provides guidance to professions offering internships and will help to ensure that both interns and employers obtain the maximum benefit from such placements.

Click here to read more about the Gateways to the Professions initiative.