The future of race equality at the Bar

The Bar Standards Board (BSB) regulates barristers in England and Wales in the public interest. Along with the Bar Council, we share a statutory objective of promoting a more diverse Bar in discharging our regulatory functions.

We believe that the Bar should be inclusive and reflect the diversity of society across all levels of the profession. This work is underpinned by our Equality and Diversity Strategy and supported by advice from our Race Equality, Religion and Belief, and Disability Taskforces.

Race Equality Taskforce turns five

The BSB’s Race Equality Taskforce was formed in June 2019 as a key outcome of our 2018 event, ‘Heads Above the Parapet: How can we improve Race Equality at the Bar?’ The Taskforce supports the delivery of our statutory objectives, by advising us on the development of strategy, policy and activity to improve race equality in the profession.

This year we are marking its fifth anniversary, both by looking back at its achievements over the last few years and looking forward to how we can continue to foster greater collaboration on the race equality agenda and promote greater visibility of role models from minoritised ethnic communities in the legal profession.

In parallel to our external work as outlined above, and following on from the publication of an Anti-Racist Statement in 2020, the BSB has now also launched an Anti-Racist Internal Strategy covering the period 2024-2027. This sets out our internal commitment to anti-racism, outlining how we intend to lead by example in setting and meeting high standards in our own approach. The strategy will support us in promoting an inclusive culture within the BSB, and fostering a diverse workforce.

How can legal regulation be a driver for equitable, diverse and inclusive change?

As the regulator of over 17,000 barristers across England and Wales, the BSB can help drive equitable, diverse and inclusive change through a range of interventions.

We recognise, in particular, that culture change cannot simply be regulated into existence, but requires the active and willing engagement of the profession. So, our approach embraces:

1. Collaboration: We work closely with a wide range of stakeholders, including the Bar Council – who do excellent work in this area such as the Race at the Bar report and their recent report on earning disparities – chambers and those who work with barristers, other regulators, DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion) networks, advocacy groups, and communities, to develop comprehensive strategies for DEI.
2. Research and analysis: We can inform and guide through our regular publications of research and analysis, including, most recently, our important study of pupillage recruitment.
3. Monitoring and reporting: We can require, through our rules governing barristers’ practice management, that chambers regularly report on diversity and inclusion, which encourages more transparency and accountability and promotes good practice in this area.
4. Education and training: We use our platform to promote awareness and provide resources for training programmes that educate individuals and organisations about the importance of diversity and inclusion and how to implement effective practices.
5. Setting standards: We establish rules and standards that mandate diversity and inclusion practices, such as through our Equality Rules. We plan to hold a public consultation on new rules in September this year.
6. Enforcement: By enforcing our rules and standards, we ensure that barristers adhere to fair practices so that the Bar provides equitable opportunities to all individuals, regardless of their ethnic background.

Commenting on the importance of legal regulation to fostering a diverse and inclusive Bar, BSB Director General Mark Neale says:

‘As the regulator of the Bar, we aim to work with the profession to help to reduce racial and other inequalities, to promote a culture of inclusion across the legal sector. We also want to build and maintain a diverse and inclusive internal workforce ensuring that the BSB is itself a role model in this area.’

Key milestones and achievements since 2019

The Race Equality Taskforce members span a wide range of different backgrounds – both those with relevant lived experiences and allies – and have expertise across a number of practice areas. Since 2019, the Taskforce members have supported the BSB in implementing a number of activities such as:

• a reverse mentoring programme;
• a race terminology paper;
• our anti-racist statement; and
• an annual Diversity at the Bar report.

The BSB’s equality rules consultation covering proposed updates to our rules pertaining to equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI)

The current Equality Rules were introduced in 2014 to ensure we meet our regulatory objectives under the Legal Services Act 2007 and our obligations under the Equality Act 2010. While the Diversity at the Bar 2023 report shows the progress of underrepresented groups at the Bar, there has been a lack of progress in areas such as pay and progression.

The BSB has committed to carrying out a fundamental review of the Equality Rules. As part of this process, we have reviewed Core Duty 8 in our Handbook and propose to include a new, positive duty requiring barristers to act in a way that advances EDI as this is necessary to accelerate EDI progress.

We hope that these proposals will support the profession in tackling discrimination, across recruitment, work distribution and career progression, combating bullying and harassment and fostering an inclusive culture, including offering flexible working arrangements and reasonable adjustments. We plan to consult publicly on these proposals from September to November, so please do contribute your views. 

Looking ahead to the future of race equity

Looking forward to the next five-year period, and following the revision of the Equality Rules, we foresee the following priority focus areas for the BSB:

• We would like to encourage chambers to reflect on gender and ethnicity earnings gaps and also focus on tackling wider challenges affecting underrepresented groups such as fair allocation of work and inclusive recruitment.
• The most recent Diversity at the Bar report revealed that there is a particular disparity in the proportion of King’s Counsel (KCs) from Black/Black British-African ethnic backgrounds. Research also shows that Black women barristers are among the lowest paid and most subjected to bullying, discrimination and harassment. We are working to support the profession to address those issues which affect minoritised ethnic communities at the Bar.
• We look forward to having more crossover meetings with our Disability and Religion & Belief Taskforces as well as continuing to work with our Taskforces as sources of expertise and guidance.

Taskforce and Board member, Professor Leslie Thomas KC, says:

‘The work of our Taskforce is not easy. I’ve come to realise that creating change at the Bar is a gradual process, much like laying the groundwork for a city. While it may sometimes feel like progress is slow, it’s essential to remember that Rome wasn’t built in a day.

'Our journey towards inclusivity and equity is about dismantling longstanding barriers, mindsets and biases, one brick at a time. Even small steps forward are significant, leading us closer to a more just and inclusive legal landscape. Hence the importance of the work the Taskforce is doing.’ 

Contribute your views to the upcoming equality rules consultation: The BSB plans to run the consultation from September to November.