Legal apprenticeships after the Level 7 funding changes

At the beginning of 2026, the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) published evidence that Solicitor apprentices were the strongest performers in the Solicitors Qualifying Examination, passing SQE1 at around 71% and SQE2 at around 93%, against 66% and 85% for the cohort as a whole. Yet in the same month, changes to funding rules made Level 7 apprenticeships less accessible to older starters.

Since 1 January, government funding for new level 7 apprenticeships in England has generally been limited to people aged 16 to 21 when they start. Care leavers and people with an Education, Health and Care Plan remain eligible if they are under 25, while those already on programme will continue to be funded through to completion.

For level 7 routes including Solicitor Apprenticeships, that means older candidates can now only take the apprenticeship where an employer is prepared to meet the full training cost. The aim is to focus public investment on younger people at the start of their careers. But for the many councils unable to meet the cost, it raises a practical question - what happens to talented candidates who come to law later, or whose route into the profession hasn’t been linear?

A route delivering results

The SRA's four-year review of the Solicitors Qualifying Examination gives the question added weight. Beyond the headline pass rates, apprentices performed better in most SQE1 sittings and in all but one SQE2 sitting.

There was little difference between the performance of school leavers and graduate apprentices, and solicitor apprentices were more likely than the wider SQE cohort to come from less privileged socio-economic backgrounds.

The figures do not prove that one route will suit everyone, however, they do show that work-based training can combine strong assessment outcomes with broader access to the profession.

A different pathway

One practical response lies at level 6. Damar Training, which has been delivering legal apprenticeships for more than a decade, has developed the new Legal Professional qualification, embedded within its Chartered Legal Executive Apprenticeship.

For eligible students, including non-graduates, the apprenticeship can be funded through the Growth and Skills Levy (formerly the Apprenticeship Levy) regardless of age, making it a cost-effective solution for local authorities. Developed in partnership with BARBRI, the programme combines Damar's apprenticeship experience with BARBRI's legal education expertise, learning technology and materials.

Approved by CILEX Regulation, the qualification, delivered with the apprenticeship, enables apprentices to qualify as Chartered Legal Executives. The programme is aimed principally at existing paralegals, including former paralegal apprentices, alongside non-law graduates and law or GDL graduates. The Chartered Legal Executive Apprenticeship takes approximately 30 months to complete.

After qualifying as a Chartered Legal Executive, individuals may, where appropriate, progress to SQE2 preparation and assessment in order to cross-qualify as solicitors. The precise timescale will depend on the individual's prior learning, preparation and assessment schedule.

Jonathan Bourne, CEO, Damar Training, said: “Our Solicitor Apprenticeship remains for those aged under 22 and is ideal for many current year law graduates as well as employers wanting to “grow their own” from age 18 or 19. But SQE is far from perfect, and we want to ensure there is an inclusive route for talented future lawyers, of all ages and backgrounds, including non-graduates.

“We designed Level 6 Legal Professional after discussion with employers about the challenges they see both with SQE and the traditional CILEX route. I am delighted that we now have an all-age pathway to qualification in two closely related legal professions. It is wonderful to see several former Damar paralegal apprentices, whose progression routes would otherwise have been restricted, taking up this opportunity.”

Megan Chant, Apprentice Lawyer, nplaw (part of Norfolk County Council), said: "The apprenticeship provides a clear pathway for career progression and will allow me to build on the foundation established during my Paralegal Apprenticeship. I am particularly interested in developing a deeper understanding of legal practice, taking on greater responsibility and enhancing my ability to support clients and colleagues effectively. The Chartered Legal Executive route also aligns with my long-term career goals, offering the opportunity to achieve professional qualification while continuing to learn and develop within the workplace."

Reta Rose, Partner and Head of Operations, Farleys Solicitors, said: "We've always believed in developing talent from within - it's how we've grown over the years. The Chartered Legal Executive Apprenticeship route lets us develop our people and help them build their skills the 'Farleys way' - client focused but with a down-to-earth approach. Not everyone comes to us with a legal background, and we love seeing people develop their careers in different ways than the traditional solicitor training route."

Learning for a changing workplace

The route into law is changing, but so too is the work itself. Technology, including AI, is reshaping legal practice. Sir Geoffrey Vos, Master of the Rolls, recently predicted that it is ‘quite likely’ people will ‘come to accept, on economic grounds, machine-enabled resolution of small disputes at first instance’.

The Legal Professional qualification has been developed through conversations with employers, including local government, and feedback from apprentices, helping to shape the programme around the changing needs of legal teams.

Assessment combines examinations with an extended project in the apprentice's area of specialism, followed by a presentation and structured Q&A. Legal technology, conduct and ethics can be mapped to the project or assessed separately. Legal technology is not currently listed as a discrete assessment topic in the SQE, but is a CILEX requirement and so is embedded in the programme. Apprentices also build evidence of their competence in the workplace.

This gives apprentices different ways to demonstrate what they know and how they apply it in practice. For employers, the extended project connects formal learning with a live workplace need.

Victoria Fearne, Head of Strategic Client Partnerships, BARBRI, said: “It was a core aim of the Solicitors Regulation Authority when implementing the SQE that it should improve access to the profession. Developing innovative and non-standard routes to qualification is the way that this is going to be achieved, and BARBRI is proud to be partnering with Damar to do just this.

“The Level 6 Legal Professional qualification forms part of an inclusive, all-age apprenticeship route, with clear line of sight to qualification across different legal professions. At the same time, legal education needs to evolve alongside the profession, equipping people not only with legal knowledge but with the practical skills to apply it in a changing workplace. Working with Damar gives us the opportunity to bring BARBRI's experience in legal education to a programme that connects learning with the realities of legal practice.”

More than one route

The level 6 programme is not presented as a replacement for the Solicitor Apprenticeship. For eligible candidates, including graduates who meet the new age criteria, Damar continues to offer its solicitor apprenticeship, with BARBRI supporting delivery through its learning technology and materials. The new pathway instead gives employers another way to develop existing paralegals and other future lawyers, while preserving the possibility of progression across closely related legal professions.

The first Chartered Legal Executive apprenticeship cohort started in September, with recruitment under way for the next cohort in March 2027.

For employers still considering their options, Damar is hosting a webinar on 20 October on what the level 7 funding changes mean in practice and the routes still open to them.