Pathways to LawReview - School of Law - University of Leeds

Pathways to LawReviewWelcome!I SI S SU UE E 32 AS U TM UM ME R N 22001 122To the third edition newsletter of the School of Law‘s WideningParticipation programme ‗Pathways to Law‘.INSIDE THISISSUE:INSIDE THISISSUE:NATIONAL CONFERENCE“A FANTASTICEVENT!”The annual Pathways National Conference took place at Warwick University thissummer. 25 Year 12 Pathways students travelled from Leeds for the three dayresidential conference in July, along with young people from the 6 other partneruniversities on the Pathways to Law programme - Bristol, Manchester, London‘s LSEand UCL, Southampton, and of course Warwick.Leeds Pathways student Tom Benson said it was a ―fantastic event‖. Read Tom‘s ownaccount of his experience on page 2.NationalConferenceNationalConferenceLondonGraduationWhere arethey now?2334

I S S U E 3 A U T U M N 2 0 1 2P A G E 2Pathways National Conference - A Personal AccountFrom my perspective and what Iperceived from the majority ofstudents who attended this fantasticevent, it was excellent. The firstday was slightly nerve-racking,generally because I was meetinghundreds of other studentsfrom around the country,London, Southampton,Bristol, etc., and so it wascertainly a newexperience for me asI've never really beento any of these places andto meet people from across the country was a new, excitingexperience.The University of Warwick was amazing. My first impression wasthat it wouldn't be very good due to it being quite isolated and assome people say "in the middle of nowhere". However I thoughtit was a beautiful campus, especially during the summer, veryrelaxed and had a great community-feel to it. Additionally, thedormitories and bedrooms were comfortable too.We began with a few introduction talks and were eventually splitinto groups, mixed with numerous students from across thecountry which was scary at first as I was the only Leeds student inmy group. After a while, it was much easier to talk to people andmaking friends became easy after the fun ice-breaker sessions andgetting involved in group work. Later, we were designated a topicto discuss as part of a presentation to the rest of the studentswhich was also nerve-racking - but the process of attempting tomake it unique through using various teamwork skills was fun!The sun shone on the Universityof Warwick for the conference.―excitingexperience‖Teamwork...Confidence......Public speaking......Presentation skillsAs a group, we shared the roles between us. Our topicwas The Right To Protest. Several tasks were given outto people in the group, such as making placards,designing and constructing a contract between theemployer and employee, creating a drama scene using anews presenter, a debating scene and a live action scenewith protesters arguing and fighting with one another.On top of this, we had a Powerpoint presentation tohelp transmit additional information to the audience.Other groups had topics such as Defamation, HumanRights and Terrorism, House of Lords‘ Reform,Squatters‘ Rights and so much more.All in all, this experience was wonderful. At first I wasquite worried about what I had got myself into but itwas definitely something I don't regret now that I'vedone it, it was very satisfactory in terms of building myteamwork, confidence in public speaking andpresentation skills.Tom Benson―fantastic event‖P A T H W A Y S T O L A W R E V I EW

Pathways National Conference―The Pathways National Conference is always one of the mostpopular events of the year – it is aimed at giving a real lifestudent experience, in a safe and structured environment. Thestudents ALL experience, first hand, university accommodation,catering facilities, lectures, support services as well as thenumerous other facilities on campus.All 7 Pathways universities are represented throughout the 4days with a total of up to 350 students. It is a great way to meetnew people, to gain confidence and to learn about legal issues.The stiff competition for the winners of the presentations meansthat the day times are all taken up with preparation – who willwin that coveted first prize??? However, the evenings comealive with quizzes, karaoke and a formal dinner and dance, mypersonal favourite. All the Pathways‘ students forge newfriendships which reflects in the confidence levels at the dinnertable and on the dance floor!‖(Herabans Kaur, Widening Participation Coordinator)P A G E 3London Graduation EventA group of keen Year 13 Pathways students along with anumber of friends and family members made the longtrip down to London to celebrate at the NationalGraduation event alongside students from the otherparticipating universities. The event, in July, took place inthe prestigious Law Society‘s Hall, in the historic buildingin the middle of the capital‘s legal and business district.Speeches by Pathways‘ Phil Moss and College of LawDirector Richard de Friend recognised and paid tributeto students‘ involvement in the Pathways programmeand inspired them to pursue and achieve their goals.The Law Society Hall, a grandsetting for the presentationsEach student was then individually called to the stage toreceive their certificate amid applause from fellowstudents, friends and proud family members. The ceremony was followed by a drinks reception, informal networkingand opportunity for photos—the last time the students will be together as Pathways participants.This national event was the culmination of two years on the programme. It was also the opportunity for students tocatch up with friends they had made when they attended last year‘s National Conference at Warwick University.For the Leeds students, there followed a walking tour of some of the sights of London, including St Paul‘s Cathedral, theRiver Thames and Tower Bridge, displaying the Olympic rings, before meeting the coach for the journey back to Leeds.After the ceremony with Herabans,Phil Moss and Richard de FriendStudents pose outside withfamily and friendsP A T H W A Y S T O L A W R E V I EW

Where are they now?P A G E 4Many of our former Pathways students have kept in touch and toldus what they have gone on to do since completing their A Levels.―I have just graduated with a 2:1 LLB(Hons) Law from the University ofLeeds. I intend to complete a Mastersprogramme in Law and Finance (2012-13) and pursue a career in this field‖.Letetia, LLB Law,University of Leeds―I am in my 3rd year studying History at UCL.I am hoping to go on to study Law in thefuture. Being an Ambassador and Mentor onthe UCL Pathways programme during my timein London has reinvigorated my enthusiasm togo on to join the Bar.I could not thank Herabans and LeedsPathways more, having helped me have afantastic experience as well as remain involvedever since.It seems as if I never left."I have just graduated from University ofNottingham, with a 2:1 in EuropeanPolitics. I plan to pursue a career workingin International Development‖.James, BA European Politics,University of NottinghamSam, BA History,University College LondonBackground to Pathways to LawPathways to Law is an innovative Widening Participation initiative for students from state schools who are interested in a career in law andwill be first generation of their family to go to university.Established by The Sutton Trust and the College of Law, the programme targets students from under-represented backgrounds, andprovides an exciting programme of activities and events throughout years 12 and 13 including lectures, debates, advice sessions, educationalvisits, law firm placements as well as ongoing support and mentoring.The ‗Pathways‘ concept began at The University of Edinburgh in 2001 and was aimed at students interested in law or medicine.A few years later the Sutton Trust produced a research report, which found that a large proportion of barristers and judges are educated infee-paying schools, and that young people from state school backgrounds are significantly underrepresented at thehighest levels in the legal profession.One year after the report, The Sutton Trust and the College of Law agreed to establish ‗Pathways to Law‘, which iscurrently run by 7 Russell Group universities: Bristol, Leeds, LSE, Manchester,Southampton, UCL and Warwick.www.pathwaystolaw.orgContact DetailsSchool of LawLiberty BuildingUniversity of LeedsLS2 9JTHerabans KaurWidening Participation CoordinatorTel: 0113 3438018E: h.kaur@leeds.ac.ukPaula SutcliffePathways to Law AssistantTel: 0113 3435950E: p.sutcliffe@leeds.ac.uk