UCL Laws partners with Barrington Hibbert Associates to launch new undergraduate scholarship

The greatest barrier to entering the profession for young people is the cost of the course. As such the lack of diversity is one of the biggest challenges facing the legal profession.

In keeping with the faculty’s vision of providing a diverse, inclusive and deeply non-discriminatory home for both staff and students, this scholarship is open to offer holders from a low-income background and from under-represented groups. 

With the help of supporters like Barrington Hibbert Associates, UCL can ensure that the brightest people thrive, regardless of their background or circumstances.

Michael Barrington-Hibbert, CEO of Barrington Hibbert Associates, said:

“It is a real honour to be able to support the scholarship and help ensure that the brightest minds can thrive.

While recent years have seen a big step forward in how we think about diversity, inclusion, and belonging, social mobility is an area that is all too often overlooked. 

Research has found that amongst the ten top City law firms, over 50% of partners attended independent schools, with those from lower socio-economic backgrounds taking on average a year longer to progress to partner. 

The legal profession has a strong duty to reflect the society that it serves, and to do this, it must be inclusive of individuals from a range of backgrounds, all of whom should be given the opportunity to excel based entirely on their abilities and commitment rather than their backgrounds.”

UCL Laws Vice Dean of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion, Dr Lucinda Miller said:

“The Barrington Hibbert Associates Scholarship will be transformational for its recipient, eliminating the financial barrier that would otherwise prevent access to the exceptional legal education that we provide at UCL Laws.

Philanthropy can play a key role in ensuring that wealth is not a determinant for access to law school, and that we all benefit from the enrichment of a diverse legal community. We are therefore delighted, and extremely grateful, that Barrington Hibbert Associates are able to support us in our mission to build a truly diverse and inclusive law school. UCL Laws has a diverse and progressive community of researchers, students, leading academics and alumni, and has long shown itself to be ambitious and passionate about doing good in the world.”

About Barrington Hibbert Associates

Barrington Hibbert Associates is a London based Executive Search, Leadership Development and Diversity Advisory firm specialising in Financial and Professional Services. Founded by Michael Barrington-Hibbert in 2010, the firm operates across EMEA and North America, and is the longest established Black owned C-suite, executive firm in Europe. 

With a global track record of both buy and sell side appointments, Barrington Hibbert Associates is dedicated to creating a genuine social impact and ensuring that people from diverse backgrounds have access to a wide range of leadership and development opportunities.

To apply for the Barrington-Hibbert Scholarship visit the UCL Laws website.

To find out more about supporting students at UCL Laws, please contact Nick Marsden, Deputy Head of Major Gifts (University) at n.marsden@ucl.ac.uk