Bar Council warns lack of support may deter disabled pupillage applicants
A significant portion of the bar remains physically closed off to wheelchair users and other disabled people, according to a new Bar Council report.
The snapshot report finds that 18% of the top 200 chambers are completely inaccessible, while only around half offer full or basic independent access for disabled people.
Accessibility depends heavily on practice area, with family sets coming out on top as most fully accessible. Commercial and chancery sets perform much worse, with 38% completely inaccessible. Criminal sets also fall behind, with only 21% fully accessible.
The report highlights a clear divide between chambers located in historic Inns of Court buildings and those outside. Twenty-six percent of chambers in the Inns estate were deemed inaccessible, compared with 9% of chambers elsewhere.
Despite the scale of the problem, 47% of chambers provide no accessibility information on their websites. The Bar Council warns this lack of visibility may discourage disabled aspiring barristers from applying for pupillage in the first place.
Planning also remains inconsistent. More than one in ten chambers admit they have no plan for how they would accommodate a wheelchair-using pupil or tenant.
Most respondents pointed to the age and listed status of chambers buildings as the biggest barrier to improvement. Eighty-six percent reported restrictions caused by historic structures and 25% cited a lack of funds for necessary works.
“The inability to physically enter your chambers can significantly impact entry to the profession and any self-employed barrister’s working life,” the report states.
It explains that inaccessible buildings may deny disabled practitioners important everyday interaction, learning opportunities and visibility with clerks and colleagues.
The Bar Council is encouraging sets to conduct full accessibility audits, publish detailed access information and plan proactively for adjustments. It intends to revisit the issue in five years to measure progress.