As part of the celebration of Brick Court’s centenary in 2021, we have partnered with the Sutton Trust and IntoUniversity, two charities committed to improving access for under-represented groups in both higher education and in the workplace. As well as raising money for them, Chambers has developed a work experience programme for students from both charities, provided speakers for various events organised by both charities and hosted a high-profile panel debate on social mobility.

As part of that partnership with the Sutton Trust and IntoUniversity, we are proud to present a series of podcasts aimed at helping aspiring lawyers from all backgrounds.

In the programmes, various members of members of Chambers are interviewed by students who are being or have been supported by the charities while in education. The interviewers asked junior barristers about their own experiences and the obstacles they overcame in coming to the bar, and about the different stages in the lifecycle of an applicant barrister, from applying to university, through application for and the experience of pupillage to the early years of practice.

In this episode Oscar Yong interviews Brick Court’s Sarah Bousfield. Their broad conversation covers Sarah’s path to the Bar and her advice on applying for pupillage.

Amongst other things, they discuss:

- What Sarah wishes she knew when she was a student & aspiring barrister

- Mistakes people make when applying for pupillage

- Diversity and inclusion (are barristers all ‘pale, male and stale’?)

Sarah Bousfield grew up in Lincolnshire where she attended a state grammar school before going on to study law at Durham University and then completed her master’s degree (BCL) at Oxford University. After being called to the Bar in 2013, Sarah undertook pupillage at 39 Essex Chambers where she practiced for six years before moving to Brick Court in 2020. She is described in Legal 500 as “an exceptional barrister, who is hard-working, enthusiastic and passionate.”

Oscar Yong grew up in London before going on to study criminology at Durham University – St Aidan’s College, where he is currently in his second year and is supported as an IntoUniversity Student Associate.