Projects include asylum support, welfare benefits appeals, and over 30,000 hours of student-led legal work
Law students and law schools across the UK have been recognised for their efforts in promoting access to justice at this year’s LawWorks and Attorney General’s Student Pro Bono Awards.
The 2026 winners were announced at a ceremony held in the House of Lords last week, with Cardiff University, Ulster University, Sheffield Hallam University and Bristol Law Centre among those taking home awards.
Cardiff University’s Fresh Claims Project secured the win for ‘Best New Pro Bono Activity’. Run in collaboration with Welsh asylum charity Asylum Justice, the initiative supports destitute appeal-rights exhausted asylum seekers who have no recourse to public funds.
Backed by 28 student volunteers, the project has taken on 14 complex end-to-end cases since November 2024, with students helping to review documents, identify legal issues, carry out research, source expert reports and draft submissions. The project has so far achieved a 100% success rate.
Elsewhere, Ulster University’s Brenda McNally scooped the award for ‘Best Contribution by an Individual’ following nearly two years of work with the Ulster University Law Clinic.
McNally, who balances part-time study with caring responsibilities for two children with special educational needs, has assisted clients in employment and welfare matters, prepared tribunal cases and supported vulnerable individuals through complex appeals. She has also acted as the clinic’s first Student Clinician Supervisor, mentoring undergraduates on interviewing, case strategy and professional standards.
Sheffield Hallam University bagged the prize for ‘Best Contribution by a Law School’ after its students contributed more than 30,000 hours of supervised pro bono legal work over the past academic year.
Through the Hallam Legal Advice Centre and Justice Hubs, students have assisted with family law, criminal injuries compensation, criminal appeals, prisoners’ rights, civil disputes and immigration matters. More than 300 students take part in supervised pro bono activity each year, while the university’s Refugee Rights Hub has supported over 2,700 clients worldwide and achieved a success rate of over 90%.
Meanwhile, Bristol Law Centre’s Legal Advocacy Support Project picked up ‘Best Contribution by a Team of Students’. The project sees students represent disabled people appealing Department for Work and Pensions decisions on Personal Independence Payment benefits at the First-tier Tribunal.
Volunteers commit for at least a year, gaining experience in case management, tribunal procedure and client care. The project’s success rate is consistently over 80%.
The Attorney General, the Rt Hon Lord Hermer KC, congratulated the winners and expressed the continued importance of pro bono work:
“Pro bono is some of the most interesting work you can get involved in as a young lawyer. It is not a substitute for legal aid, but it embodies the very best of what it means to be a lawyer: a belief that the law should serve everyone, no matter who they are.”
He continued: “And while you can’t say yes to every case, the experiences you will gain through pro bono won’t happen in your usual nine-to-five. They will challenge you. They will surprise you. They will connect you with people whose lives will stay with you long after. And on the hard days, they will remind you of why you wanted to be a lawyer in the first place.”
