Celebrating Scholarship and Bursary Awards with the CILEX Foundation

12 August 2024

The CILEX Foundation charity celebrates a record-breaking round of funding this summer, as the results of the annual Scholarship and Bursary award cycles are announced.

Ten aspiring students will receive awards of up to £13,000 each, after applying to the CILEX Lawyer Scholarship programme. The Scholarship – which is designed to support students who are new to CILEX learning – will allow these students to begin their legal education as they embark on their early legal careers.

A further 13 talented CILEX members received CILEX Foundation Bursaries. These awards allow the Member to remain in education, whether it is continuing their CPQ studies at the end of an apprenticeship, completing their legacy qualifications, or joining the CILEX Graduate Qualification or CPQ Professional stage.

This year, applications were assessed by a group of CILEX Fellows, Advocates and those in senior roles in Law, who volunteered their time to support the charity.

Launching legal careers

Student Hannah Chapman, a Legal Administrator who received the full CILEX Lawyer Scholarship told us: “I have not had the financial ability to be able to fund any form of qualification, especially while raising my 2-year-old. It almost started to feel like it would be impossible.

The CILEX Foundation have given me this opportunity and I couldn’t be more grateful. My aspirations of becoming a lawyer seem a lot closer to reach than they were, and it has given me a lot more confidence in myself.”

Providing opportunities to progress

Student Julie Weeks, a Legal Secretary who received Bursary funding to enrol on the CPQ Advanced stage says: “Due to a change of firm and being on probation period, I didn’t have the money to self-fund and during a catch-up call with my LDA towards the end of my foundation level, she encouraged me to apply. I never thought I would be successful and was delighted that I can now continue with my CPQ qualification as without CILEX Foundation’s support, my studies would have had to stayed at foundation level for the time being.”

Recognising potential, rewarding talent

Dominique Edell, Charity Lead for the CILEX Foundation told us: “We are delighted to be able to support so many aspiring CILEX Legal professional with their studies this year. Celebrating the achievements of Scholarship and Bursary winners highlights the importance of investing in the next generation of Legal talent. These awards not only provide financial assistance, but also instil a sense of pride and motivation in those who receive them.

We were grateful to receive support from a group of experienced volunteers this year, who were all struck by the ambition, positivity and determination shown by candidates, many of whom have experienced socio-economic barriers and social mobility challenges.

Through our ongoing efforts, the CILEX Foundation ensures that the Legal profession remains accessible and inclusive, fostering a diverse and talented workforce for the future.

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Notes to editors:

The CILEX Foundation is a registered charity, committed to supporting those who aspire to become CILEX Lawyers. If you, your firm or your professional network would like to discuss ways that you can becoming involved in the Charity’s work in 2025 – from volunteering as an assessor to providing experiences and opportunities for our student award recipients – please contact us.

CILEX (The Chartered Institute of Legal Executives) is one of the three main professional bodies covering the legal profession in England and Wales. The approximately 18,000 -strong membership is made up of CILEX Lawyers, Chartered Legal Executives, paralegals and other legal professionals.

CILEX pioneered the non-university route into law and recently launched the CILEX Professional Qualification (CPQ), a new approach to on-the-job training that marries legal knowledge with the practical skills, behaviours and commercial awareness needed by lawyers in the 2020s.

The CPQ is a progressive qualification framework that creates a workforce of specialist legal professionals, providing a career ladder from Paralegal through to Advanced Paralegal and ultimately full qualification as a CILEX Lawyer. CILEX Lawyers can become partners in law firms, coroners, judges or advocates in open court.

CILEX members come from more diverse backgrounds than other parts of the legal profession:

77% of its lawyers are women
16% are from ethnic minority backgrounds
- 8% are Asian or Asian British
- 5% are Black or Black British
- 3% are from a mixed ethnic background
85% attended state schools
33% are the first generation in their family to attend university
Only 3% of its members have a parent who is a lawyer.

CILEX members are regulated through an independent body, CILEx Regulation. It is the only regulator covering paralegals.