CILEx Regulation Limited (CRL) has approved an application by the Bloomsbury Institute to become an accredited training provider, thereby expanding the number of training providers able to offer routes into qualification as a chartered legal executive.
The announcement means that students on Bloomsbury Institute’s new LLB (Hons) Law and Legal Practice programme will be able to complete the academic stage of authorisation to become a chartered legal executive at the same time as achieving an undergraduate degree. This will provide Bloomsbury Institute graduates with greater flexibility and choice when considering their career options, whilst at the same time minimising the costs of becoming a qualified lawyer through CRL.
Once authorised, chartered legal executives are both Commissioners for Oaths and are also able to provide legal advice in their specialist area. This, coupled with the diverse student population at Bloomsbury Institute, will ensure that CILEX Lawyers continue to reflect the communities they serve.
Vicky Purtill, CRL Chief Operating Officer said:
CILEx Regulation has a proud history of supporting initiatives that widen access to those wishing to pursue a career in law. We are delighted to be able to approve the application from the Bloomsbury Institute to deliver the academic stage of our new education standards. We believe this will promote greater social mobility and diversity within the legal profession. We are looking forward to many years of working with the Bloomsbury Institute, and welcome expressions of interest from other providers who wish to explore becoming accredited with us.
John Fairhurst, Bloomsbury Institute’s Managing Director and Academic Principal said:
We welcome the news that CILEx Regulation has approved our application for accreditation. With our current LLB degree programme ranked first in London for student satisfaction, Bloomsbury Institute has proven a popular choice for those among our very diverse student population wishing to access the legal profession – a commitment we share with CRL – and we believe our redesigned LLB (Hons) Law and Legal Practice will be no exception.
We have worked closely with CILEx Regulation at every stage of the design process to ensure compliance with the academic stage of training, resulting in every module having a practice-based element and our Level 4 Clinical Legal Education module allowing all students to participate as volunteers in our Law Clinic. The strong emphasis on practice will enable our students to develop knowledge and skills that can be directly applied to the workplace. By making available free laptops and grants for broadband we are also helping our students overcome the digital divide, enabling us to provide a 21st century practice-based legal education for all.
Through our Centre for Community Engagement and Learning we are working with the legal profession in London to raise awareness of the CILEx route to legal practice, and how this route will have a positive impact on widening diversity within the legal profession and promoting social mobility.
