A SULLY student has enjoyed a summer scheme which encourages disadvantaged young people in Wales to consider careers in law.

The Lord Edmund-Davies Legal Education Trust (LEDLET) showcased its work to the Welsh Assembly and called for support in toppling barriers to entry.

Every year 10 talented youngsters from Wales are selected to spend a week mixing with London’s legal elite at the invitation and expense of LEDLET.

This year Lois Noble, 17, from Sully, was selected to attend. She said, “The scheme was an experience of a lifetime and I feel that I have gained a great deal of information about the professions, the law, universities and I now have a superb understanding of the entry requirements needed. It has made me realise that even without a family member in law, connections are easy to make if you put yourself out there.”

The charity, LEDLET, run by trustees who are practising lawyers in London, took its name from the late Lord Edmund-Davies from Mountain Ash in South Wales, who rose from humble beginnings to become one of the most highly respected lawyers of the last century.

Rhys Meggy, a barrister in London, is one of the lawyers organising the event which is being sponsored by law firm, Slater and Gordon.

He said: “We set up LEDLET in 2012 and for the last two years have run a summer scheme through which Welsh sixth-form students come to London to get a taste of life in the legal field. They spend a day at a law firm, a day in barristers’ chambers, a day with judges at the Old Bailey and their evenings meeting law students and young lawyers. Those students who don’t own and can’t afford a suit are bought one.

“We have also started visiting schools and careers fairs in Wales and giving talks about careers in the law, trying to bust the old-fashioned myths about ‘what types of people become lawyers’. It is apparent that there is still a deficit of understanding among many students and teachers alike.

“Our motto is ‘aim high’ and our message is crucial at this time. Applications by Welsh students to the best universities are at an all time low, and lack of encouragement at school and dented student self-belief are cited as the causes.

“Even if students come away from interacting with LEDLET and don’t want to be lawyers, it doesn’t matter. It’s ultimately just about encouraging them to aim high and giving them confidence in their potential.

“We have already seen that our work is making a difference. Many of the young people we’ve worked with have said that LEDLET has completely changed their outlook and they wouldn’t have realised that a legal career was available to them otherwise.”

“However, there is a long road ahead of us, and that is why we need the Assembly’s support in engaging educators across Wales with our message and our work.”

For more information about the charity and its work go to ledlet.org.uk.