BSB publishes latest draft of the framework for authorising Bar training providers
The Bar Standards Board (BSB) has today published the latest draft of its Authorisation Framework for the Approval of Education and Training Organisations (AETOs), who provide vocational training and pupillage and other forms of work-based learning for those training for the Bar.
Today’s draft takes into account comments received on previous drafts which were first published for consultation in October 2017 and which have subsequently been the subject of an extensive
programme of consultative engagement with relevant stakeholders.
The purpose of the Authorisation Framework is to explain to training providers what they must do to meet the BSB’s requirements to be authorised to deliver Bar training. In particular, it explains what will be required to comply with the BSB’s four principles of accessibility, affordability, flexibility and sustaining high standards.
The BSB is also today publishing guidance for those who wish to become authorised to deliver the vocational component of Bar training e.g. Universities. Guidance will be published for those providing pupillage and other forms of work-based learning in the future.
These separate guidance documents will explain the different sets of evidence which the BSB will require from the two types of AETO to reflect the different components of training which they
will provide. The evidence sought from a training provider offering vocational training to a large number of students will be of a different scope and nature to that required from a chambers with
only one or two pupils, for example. This reflects the BSB’s risk-based approach to Bar Training. The guidance for those providing pupillage will be piloted before publication to ensure that it is easy to use by chambers and other providers of work-based learning.
The BSB would welcome comments and feedback on these documents which will evolve in the light of feedback from training providers and others with an interest.
Vanessa Davies, the Director General of the Bar Standards Board said: “We hope that these documents will help training providers to prepare for the new authorisation arrangements and will encourage them to innovate in providing new ways of training for the Bar. We are very grateful to all those who commented on the framework during the consultation period and who have contributed to the framework and guidance work since then. We look forward to discussing the guidance for vocational training with existing and potential providers, and in due course to working closely with chambers to pilot the guidance that they will need.”
The Authorisation Framework is available here and the guidance for those wishing to provide vocational Bar training is available here.
About the Bar Standards Board
Our mission is to regulate barristers and specialised legal services businesses in England and Wales in the public interest.
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