GCSE summer ☀️

There are only a few weeks left before school begins.

I haven’t sat in a single A Level lesson. So, I’m definitely not going to pretend that I’ve cracked the secret to everything, let alone applying to or getting into university.

What I can say is that I’ve been doing bits and bobs in and around these last few weeks, as an aspiring law student.

Here’s what I’ve been doing!

Go to a local court! ⚖️

I’ve visited the big Mags and Crown (abbreviations for Magistrates’ Court and Crown Court; I know, larping live in the big Toaster) quite a few times over the summer, and I’ve even made friends with people in the public galleries and clerks! The clerk just administrates the “procedural” parts of the court – one of their roles is to say “all rise” when the authority of the court enters or leaves, which always gives me goosebumps for some reason.

Going to court is always an up and down situation. I’ve sat through trials (12 jury panel in the Crown Court deciding on whether a defendant is guilty based off the evidence provided) and sentencings, and they’ve definitely reality checked me – our legal system, though adversarial, is really slow. Not in a bad way, but in a bad way – hope that makes sense. I spoke to someone who had worked as a magistrate for over 30 years who happened to be in the public gallery at the same time as I was, and he made a really good point: if you’re visiting court to get the juice of a super complicated trial with a bunch of witnesses and a hung jury who can’t make up their mind if their lives depended on it, good luck. If you’re lucky, you’ll find yourself in really insightful, eye-opening situations and conversations in courts, but you also have to almost feel humble.

The people in these courts, whether defendants or claimants/plaintiffs, are here for reasons we may be unfamiliar with, such as rape, abuse and homelessness. Being in these situations are most likely unimaginable to our naive student minds. We are privileged that our legal system allows for us to observe justice right in front of us, but this benefit should be taken on board with a sense of respect.

“Going to court”, the magistrate roughly said, “is to expose yourself to the reality of our courts.”

He definitely didn’t say that verbatim, but it was something like that. To be a good solicitor/barrister/paralegal/clerk/judge/every other legal role that exists, I think you have to be prepared for everything: hours of silence, slip ups, lots and lots of loss, watching the duty solicitor scroll through BBC sport whilst they’re representing someone… my goodness, this duty solicitor was an interesting person. Reading the news, looking at football scores, maybe there’s a reason why? Definitely for next time.

There’s also something strangely inspiring about all the formality. People standing as judges and magistrates enter, watching people bow to the coat of arms when leaving the courtroom – I always get goosebumps when I see these things happen in front of me. The traditions of the courts are definitely not something to take for granted.

What is arguably the most important thing is watching how people actually use the law. You can listen to how arguments are structured by both sides, how judges address the jury, or how magistrates address the defendant, how witnesses respond to questions, and how something that might look quite straightforward on paper can get messy just through a couple of words. I was once sat in a case involving bladed articles in public places – I’m not sure if it was me or the witness, but something really didn’t make sense in what the person was saying. There were logical fallacies, backtracked points that didn’t end the way they started… it was just quite messy. But, with the power of the persuasion of the defendant’s solicitor, who was so well-spoken and articulate, the magistrates found the defendant not guilty. Of course, it’s not as simple as that, but it shows how cases can be a case of “showing off” and “manipulating” the legal authorities (without lying, obviously).

Moral of the story: go to court, take notes, switch your phone off, and gain an understanding of the intricate system you’ll be a part of in the future.

Oh yeah, don’t take a massive bag with you, especially not to Crown Courts. They make you take EVERYTHING out, sip tests of any liquids – grateful for sure, but always a chore. (holy rhyme the big Toaster is on fire)

https://www.find-court-tribunal.service.gov.uk is your go-to link for finding your nearest court, and a https://www.courtserve.net/ account will give you access to the cases happening.

Read something… 📖

I’ve been reading some interesting books over the summer – this doesn’t mean I’ve ordered university law textbooks and attempted to memorise English contract law before September.

I’d recommend you find something you’re genuinely interested in.

It could be a book about a famous case, an introduction to a type of law, something about criminal justice, constitutional law, legal theory, human rights, EU law, the legal profession itself or even a book arguing that the law should be a certain way.

Your local library is a great place to start, especially because these activities don’t need to cost you anything:

https://www.gov.uk/local-library-services

Reading 25 books and saying you have is all good, but it won’t really get you anywhere. So, I’d recommend reading critically and actively: question what you’re reading and make a note of all the questions you make. Follow what catches your attention, and once you’ve finished reading the book, summarise the book in your own words and your findings. Make note of this – you could find yourself using a critical lesson you learnt in a personal statement or an application in the future…

Remember: don’t fear rabbit holes. If a chapter or a even a sentence sends you down a two hour rabbit hole about a particular case, that’s probably more valuable than racing through 300 pages and not understanding what you’re reading.

Here are some books you could take a look at:

Book	Description	Link
Letters to a Law Student	Practical advice and answers to common questions asked when thinking about applying to study law + what you can do after your studies in the form of letters	First 40 pages: https://api.pageplace.de/preview/DT0400.9781292149257_A30881914/preview-9781292149257_A30881914.pdf Amazon link: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Letters-Law-Student-Studying-University/dp/1292149248
What About Law? Studying Law at University	Case studies, really good at countering the misconception that the law is bland, really useful to understand why you might want to study law.	Amazon link: https://www.amazon.co.uk/What-About-Law-Studying-University/dp/184946085X
The Rule of Law	Lord Bingham explaining why the law matters (through a concept called the rule of law, which is very well explained in the book)	Amazon link: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Rule-Law-Tom-Bingham/dp/014103453X
About Law: An Introduction	Explores how core branches of law, like criminal and contract, maintain social order	Amazon link: https://www.amazon.co.uk/About-Law-Introduction-author-Honore/dp/B00L7117XA
Eve Was Framed	Really powerful critique of the English legal system’s horrible treatment of disadvantaged groups, led by stereotyping	Amazon link: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Eve-Was-Framed-British-Justice/dp/0099224410

Actually look at your 🅰️ levels.

I’ve spent some time getting a basic grounding in the subjects I’m about to study. The really easy way I’ve done this is through my school’s bridging work, and YouTube! If you just Google something along the lines of:

Exam board + subject + gcse to a level (E.g OCR Maths GCSE to A LEVEL)

Many good resources are bound to appear that will help transition your mindset from that of a GCSE student to that of an A Level student.

Another way to prepare yourself is by looking at your specifications. Look through the main topic areas, find out what interests you etc.

Your academics at A Level do matter quite a bit.

A good collection of court visits, books, webinars, work experiences don’t actually replace doing well at school. So, getting ready over the next few days will be quite important to keep yourself ahead of the game when September arrives.

Check what you’re eligible for now!

This one is really easy to miss.

There are some genuinely brilliant programs available to secondary school students. Some of them have eligibility requirements based on your school, postcode, family circumstances or other factors.

If you might qualify, just check! Never assume that you won’t qualify for something.

Click through the links in this table and see if anything tickles your fancy:

1. Sutton Trust Pathways to Law (Applications open September 2026)

“Getting into Law can be highly competitive, and so the Sutton Trust wants to offer you the opportunity to gain the necessary knowledge and skills to break that barrier. Pathways to Law is completely free (including travel) and provides support in accessing higher education, training in soft skills, and understanding careers in Law with incredible work experience opportunities.”

In-person version: https://pathwaysprogrammes.suttontrust.com/career-pathways/law

Online version: https://pathwaysprogrammes.suttontrust.com/career-pathways/law/pathways-to-law-with-sutton-trust-online (Applications open 1st September, close 1st November, results announced in October – December)

2. Oxford UNIQ (Application timetable not released, but applications probably open in December like last year?) –> https://www.uniq.ox.ac.uk/key-dates

“The UNIQ Law course is a great experience for anyone with an interest in law, whether or not you want to pursue a legal career. Studying law draws on a range of skills from the humanities and from the sciences, making the UNIQ Law course ideal for anyone who wants to try something new. The course is equally accessible to everyone, no matter which A Levels you are studying.

The UNIQ Law course includes taster lectures to give you an introduction to some of the broad range of topics that you will encounter during a Law degree.

You will gain skills in developing your own arguments, thinking analytically about challenging issues, and understanding new material, as well as useful information about a range of legal careers.

If you enjoy debating and discussing real life issues, or you love grappling with complex problems which affect everyone in society, then you will love the UNIQ Law course.”

3. University of Cambridge Exploring Law Conference (5th April – 8th April 2027)

Applications open mid October, close late November, and successful applicants are notified

Outside of all of this, though I do enjoy this a lot, I’m enjoying what is left of my summer.

September is coming soon, and the real fun will begin.

📖