Government launches £1.5 million criminal pupillage scheme

Government-backed scheme will provide matched funding for criminal pupillages across England and Wales

Criminal pupillage scheme funding has been launched by the government, with the initiative backed by £1.5 million a year and intended to deliver up to 100 additional criminal pupillages annually.

The match-funded scheme will provide dedicated support for pupillages across England and Wales. It builds on the Council of the Inns of Court’s existing pupillage match-funding programme.

The Bar Council said the initiative follows a proposal it put forward in 2024 for government funding for 100 additional criminal pupillages. The proposal was made under then Bar Council Chair Sam Townend KC and was included in the organisation’s ‘Manifesto for justice’.

For chambers, the immediate practical point is the application window. Chambers can apply for matched funding from 1 September until 16 October 2026. The government and organisations involved will then communicate decisions to chambers during the week commencing 2 November 2026.

The scheme is aimed at strengthening the future pipeline of junior criminal barristers. For solicitors involved in criminal practice, the measure is relevant because the Bar Council has linked additional pupillage capacity to the availability of criminal barristers and the functioning of the wider criminal justice system.

Bar Council Chair Kirsty Brimelow KC welcomed the implementation of the initiative, describing it as the result of joint working between the Ministry of Justice, the Bar Council, the Criminal Bar Association and the Inns of Court.

She said the Bar Council had championed the initiative since 2024 and described additional funding for criminal pupillages as a necessary step towards strengthening the long-term pipeline of junior criminal barristers.

The Bar Council said this increased pipeline would support the criminal justice system by helping address delays associated with a depleted criminal barrister workforce. It specifically identified complainants, witnesses and defendants as people who could benefit from reduced delays.

The announcement places the new funding within the wider issue of maintaining the criminal Bar workforce. Rather than providing a general funding measure for legal professionals, the scheme is specifically directed towards matched funding for criminal pupillages.

The £1.5 million annual backing is intended to support up to 100 additional pupillages each year. The Bar Council said the initiative resulted from collaboration between the Ministry of Justice, the Bar Council, the Criminal Bar Association and the Inns of Court.

The application process is now open to eligible chambers. Applications must be submitted during the period running from 1 September to 16 October 2026, with decisions due to be communicated during the week commencing 2 November 2026.

The Bar Council’s announcement was published on 1 September 2026. It said the scheme represents implementation of an initiative the organisation has advocated since 2024.

For criminal practitioners and firms working with the criminal Bar, the key development is the additional route for chambers to obtain matched funding for pupillage places. The scheme is expected to add capacity to the pipeline of junior criminal barristers, with the stated wider objective of helping reduce delays associated with shortages in the criminal barrister workforce.