SRA awards £360,000 to support disadvantaged candidates taking SQE
updated on 11 August 2025
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The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has awarded £360,000 to 11 organisations, including The University of Law and the Law Society of England and Wales’ Diversity Access Scheme, to support aspiring solicitors from disadvantaged backgrounds to sit the Solicitors Qualifying Exam (SQE).
The funding aims to cover the entry fee exam costs for SQE1 and/or SQE2 for up to 190 candidates, reflecting the SRA’s “commitment to meeting the SQE objectives” – one of which is “to promote a diverse profession by removing artificial and unjustifiable barriers”. The pool of money has been building since the SQE was introduced in 2021 and is sourced from the SQE Access and Reinvestment Fund.
The organisations selected to receive the funding offer a range of legal, education and social mobility services. Each had to apply for a share of the fund, with those successful now able to choose candidates to benefit from the funding through individual selection processes.
The SRA is distributing funding to the following organisations:
- Aberystwyth University Veterans' Legal Link
- Accutrainee
- Black and Proud CIC
- Bristol Law Society
- Law Training Centre
- Legal Social Mobility Fund
- Social Welfare Solicitors' Qualification Fund
- The College of Legal Practice
- The Law Society of England and Wales (The Diversity Access Scheme)
- The University of Central Lancashire
- The University of Law
