29 Bedford Row Chambers

29 Bedford Row Chambers is committed to the principle of equality of opportunity regardless of age, race, nationality, sex, gender re-assignment, gender identity, sexual orientation, marital or civil partnership status, disability, religion or belief, pregnancy or political persuasion.

Our commitment to promoting equal opportunities, diversity, inclusion, and ensuring an absence of discrimination requires that positive steps are taken to identify and eliminate possible discrimination in the decisions that need to be taken concerning:

• The recruitment of pupils, tenants, clerks or other staff;
• Relations between pupils, tenants, clerks and other staff – both professionally and socially;
• The treatment of those connected with chambers, whether directly or indirectly as lay and professional clients.

A full copy of our equality and diversity policy is attached here and sets out in more detail the steps which we are taking to ensure that 29 Bedford Row is an environment free from discrimination.

A commitment to equality, diversity, and inclusion must of course be more than simply one made ‘on paper’. We therefore support (including financially) organisations and initiatives which encourage disadvantaged and minority groups to consider pursuing a career at the Bar. We also support organisations that provide legal advice and assistance to those who cannot afford representation.

Over recent years this has included:

• Participation in Bridging the Bar - https://www.bridgingthebar.org;
• Sponsorship of 10,000 Black Interns and hosting one of the students - https://www.10000blackinterns.com;
• Sponsorship of and involvement in events arranged by the Queen Mary University Bar Society – where 91% of undergraduates are from state schools; 62% are BAME; 42% are the first into Higher Education in their families; and 27% are from households where the annual taxable income is less than £15,000 pa - https://www.queenmarybarsociety.org
• Participation in Middle Temple’s Access to the Bar Scheme Award- https://www.middletemple.org.uk/becoming-barrister/access-bar-award;
• Supporting the LEDLET Summer Scheme - https://www.ledlet.org.uk/copy-of-summer-scheme;
• Participation in FreeBar and in particular its Visibility Project which contains a collection of profiles from LGBTQ+ members of the profession - https://freebar.co.uk/visibility-project/;
• Becoming a Guardian sponsor of Support Through Court, a charity which provides free, independent assistance to litigants attending court without legal representation - http://supportthroughcourt.org; and
• Individual members visiting educational institutions to promote access to the Bar and getting involvement in mentoring programmes

We are always keen to become involved in other schemes that promote social mobility and otherwise widen access to the Bar.