GLP Pupil Barrister Trainees 2026 | London, Leeds
| Category: | Trainees |
| Position Type: | Fixed Term |
| Attachments: | No File Attached |
Job Description
Summary
The Government Legal Profession (GLP) Legal Trainee Scheme offers you the opportunity to start your legal career by undertaking your pupil barrister training in either the Government Legal Department (GLD), or, HMRC Solicitor's Office and Legal Services (SOLS).
Location
GLD London 102 Petty France, Westminster, London, SW1H 9GL
GLD, 7–8 Wellington Place, Leeds, LS1 4AP
HMRC Solicitor's Office and Legal Services, 14 Westfield Avenue, Stratford, London, E20 1HZ
Salary
Note: Salaries and terms and conditions differ by department and are subject to review and change.
GLD's first and second year salaries are currently:
First Year: £34,695
Second Year: £39,645
HMRC's first and second year salaries are currently:
First year salaries are currently: £42,631
Second year salaries are currently: £42,752
Job description
Whether the government is buying goods and services, setting the annual budget and collecting the right amount of tax, employing people, or defending its decisions in court, it needs significant levels of legal advice on a whole range of complex issues.
You can expect to be fully involved in a range of interesting legal work and to receive high quality training in a supportive and inclusive working environment.
You will have the opportunity to build a rewarding legal career, working on some of the biggest legal issues of the day. The work is cutting edge, public-serving, and often headline news. If that wasn't enough, you may have the opportunity to make the law, not just interpret it.
Whilst this can never be guaranteed, on successful completion of the two-year training programme, departments hope to be able to offer a permanent qualified lawyer position. This will be subject to meeting the standards applied in the recruitment of qualified lawyers.
What you can expect
The training programme will last two years in total. No account will be taken of training completed elsewhere. You will be employed on a two-year fixed term training contract.
The pupillage period (first 12 months) is likely to comprise of a six-month (non-practising) training seat in the department (i.e. GLD or HMRC) and a six-month (practising) seat in a set of external barristers' chambers.
The Professional Statement describes the knowledge, skills and attributes that you will need to develop and apply during the pupillage period in order to qualify as a barrister. During the remaining 12 months of the training programme you will be provided with wider experience of the department's legal work.
Whilst you can expect to be involved in the wide and interesting range of work in which the department and chambers are involved and you will be offered the advocacy opportunities necessary to complete your pupillage successfully, we use the services of external counsel for nearly all of our court-based advocacy. This means that court-based advocacy opportunities are extremely limited. Those wishing to focus principally on a court-based advocacy career should bear this in mind.
As part of our current smarter working policies, employees are expected to work at least 60% of their contracted hours each month from a GLD/ HMRC office (unless adjustments are agreed for disability or caring responsibilities).
Person Specification
A detailed Person Specification, setting out the skills and behaviours required (e.g. making effective decisions, communicating and influencing, delivering at pace and motivation for the role) is available on the GLP Website.
What do you need to be eligible to apply?
As you would expect, there are some must haves. The minimum being that you must meet the Civil Service Nationality requirements and have obtained, or be predicted to obtain, a minimum of a 2:2 (Hons) in a qualifying law degree or in an undergraduate degree in a non-law subject; or hold equivalent qualifications (e.g. CILEx) as recognised by the professional bodies.
You'll also need to have successfully completed the Graduate Diploma in Law/CPE (i.e. a law conversion which covers the foundation topics in law) where a degree is held in a non-law subject; and the Bar Professional Training Course (BPTC)/ Bar Training Course (BTC) before you join us for the start of your pupillage.
Further details can be found on the GLP website.
Note: The GLP Legal Trainee Scheme is not open to anyone who is already a qualified solicitor or barrister; anyone who has previously completed or is currently on the GLP Legal Trainee Scheme; or anyone who has already qualified as a lawyer in another jurisdiction.
Nationality requirements
There are some restrictions as to who can become a Civil Servant, based on nationality. The Civil Service Nationality Rules has further details, and you can ensure your eligibility to work for the Civil Service. It is the responsibility of the applicant to ensure that they meet the Civil Service nationality requirements before applying for a role.
Security checks
All employees must hold BPSS security clearance and be willing and able to obtain SC level security clearance. You can find out more about the vetting and clearance levels before completing your application here.
Financial and Other support available
Funding will be available for the Bar Training Course (BTC) only where the course has not yet started, at the point of offer.
A bursary (i.e. maintenance grant) will also be available for the BTC where the course has not yet started. This will be around £5,400 (National) or £7,600 (London). You will need to discuss your eligibility for a bursary with the relevant department at the offer stage.
Note: No funding will be available for the Pupil Barrister position in Leeds starting in early September 2026 due to timings i.e. you will need to have successfully completed (i.e. passed) the BPTC/BTC at the point of applying.
Additionally, we provide our pupil barristers with a laptop and mobile phone and other working from home equipment. And there is funding available to meet the costs of compulsory courses during pupillage and reimbursement for pupils' travel expenses for court attendance.
Other arrangements in place to support employees include, for example, season ticket loan, rental deposit and salary advance schemes. And, alongside your Legal Trainee salary departments will contribute towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme.
Diversity and Inclusion
The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see the Civil Service People Plan.
Working for the Civil Service
The Civil Service Code sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.
We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles.
The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. We, therefore, run a Disability Confident Scheme whereby candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria in the person specification are guaranteed an interview. For information specific to the GLP Legal Trainee Pupil Barrister Campaign, please see here.
Application Process
The application process opens on 5 January 2026. The deadline for the online application form to be submitted is Thursday 22 January (11:59pm). For further details about the timetable and recruitment process please see the GLP Website.
Contact Point for Applicants:
