CILEX Foundation
About the CILEX Foundation Charity
The CILEX Foundation is an independent, registered charity supporting CILEX members, CILEX students and those who aspire to become CILEX Lawyers.
We help address inequality and underrepresentation in the legal sector. We do this by removing financial and social mobility barriers to legal education and career progression.
Our programmes of support ensure that more talented and aspiring lawyers are achieving their career goals.
Grant making in 2026
Practice Rights Grants
The CILEX Foundation has launched a new round of Practice Rights Grants in March 2026, created specifically to support CILEX members whose roles have been most severely affected by the outcome of Mazur v Charles Russell Speechlys LLP.
These grants are designed to help members whose post-Mazur circumstances make it particularly challenging to secure the Practice Rights they need to protect their roles, maintain continuity of work, and safeguard their professional futures.
Eligibility criteria
To apply for a Practice Rights Grant, members must meet all of the following criteria:
- Be a resident of England or Wales.
- Be a CILEX Fellow at the time of applying, or have held Fellowship prior to the Mazur ruling.
- Have prepared an application for Practice Rights via the CRL portfolio route.
- Not be receiving funding from any other source to obtain Practice Rights e.g. workplace funding.
- Be able to demonstrate that they have lost their job role or suffered demotion/pay reduction or that their current employment is at risk, or that their work is otherwise compromised, if Practice Rights are not obtained.
- Money and debt advice, Free for CILEX members and their families: PayPlan
- Access to cost-of-living grants for CILEX members and members of their household: Lightening Reach
- Free or low-cost tickets to a wide range of events for CILEX members and their families: Tickets for Good
- CILEX Members can also access Mental Health support from LawCare
Applicants are strongly encouraged to read our Information Guide – Practice Rights Grants, before beginning their application.
Practice Rights Grant FAQs
About the grant
1. What is the Practice Rights Grants Programme?
The Practice Rights Grants Programme is a financial support initiative from the CILEX Foundation designed to help eligible CILEX members make an application for practice rights through the CRL portfolio route.
2. How much funding is available?
Eligible members will be able to apply for a £450 grant to contribute towards the cost of obtaining Practice Rights via the CRL portfolio route. This targeted financial support is intended for those who have suffered severe detriment as a consequence of the judgment such as job loss, demotion or pay cut or whose employment or work opportunities may otherwise be at risk if Practice Rights are not obtained.
Please note: Grants will only be available to members undertaking the portfolio route. Members pursuing the assessment/study and assessment route will not be eligible.
3. When does the grant open for applications?
Applications open on 18 March 2026.
4. When does the grant close for applications?
The application will run continuously, whilst funding allows. If we plan to close the grant, we will notify members via CILEX Member communication channels, giving as much
notice as possible.
5. Is the grant paid directly to me or to CILEx Regulation Limited?
The grant will not be paid direct to individual members. Instead, we will notify both you and CRL if your application for grant funding is successful, so that the amount can be deducted from their invoice to you.
6. How many grants are available?
The number of grants available each year will depend on continued funding capacity. We are committed to helping as many members as possible, however we reserve the right to bring the programme to a close or pause the programme for new applications should the number of applications exceed available funds at any given time.
7. Can I apply for more than one grant?
No. Each member may only receive one Practice Rights Grant.
8. Do I need to repay the grant?
No. The grant is a non-repayable financial award, provided all conditions of the programme are met.
9. Who funds the grant – CILEX, CRL or The CILEX Foundation?
The CILEX Foundation Practice Rights Grant programme is funded solely by the CILEX Foundation charity.
The CILEX Foundation is a registered charity, and our programmes are funded entirely by generous donations.
Eligibility
1. Who is eligible to apply?
To apply for a Practice Rights Grant, members must meet all of the following criteria:
– Be a resident of England or Wales.
– Be a CILEX Fellow at the time of applying, or have held Fellowship prior to the Mazur ruling.
– Have prepared an application for Practice Rights via the CRL portfolio route at the time of applying for the grant.
– Not be receiving funding from any other source to obtain Practice Rights e.g. workplace funding.
– Be able to demonstrate that they have lost their job role or suffered demotion/pay reduction or that their current employment is at risk, or that their work is otherwise compromised, if Practice Rights are not obtained.
If you are unsure whether you are eligible, please contact the Charity Lead at [email protected]
2. I have already paid to submit my portfolio – can I obtain a grant for the money I have already paid?
No. The grant cannot be used to recompense for money already spent.
3. I want to enrol on the Assessment/Study and Assessment route through the University of Law – can I obtain grant funding to offset this cost?
No. Only applications for the CRL portfolio submission route are eligible for Grant funding.
How to apply
1. How do I apply for the grant?
Eligible members are invited to apply online. The simple application form can be found via the CILEX Foundation section of your MyCILEX portal.
2. When will I find out if my application is successful?
We aim to notify applicants of the outcome of their request for grant funding within 10-15 working days. We may increase this timeframe during peak demand periods to allow us to fairly and thoroughly assess applications.
3. What evidence will I need to provide?
To ensure that charity funds are being allocated correctly, we reserve the right to ‘dip sample’ applications at random, to request further supporting evidence. We do not anticipate that this process will lengthen the assessment process.
Please do not attach anything to your application. We will contact you separately if we require further information from you.
4. How can I prepare to make my application?
We strongly recommend that applicants read the Information and Guidance document prior to starting their application.
5. Will I be asked for any further information or feedback after a Grant is made?
We will ask all Grant recipients to provide confirmation of the outcome of their application to CRL (i.e. that Practice Rights were granted).
Scholarships, Bursaries and other support
1. I want to apply for funding for a CILEX Course (CPQ or Legacy). When can I do this?
The CILEX Foundation will not hold Scholarship or Bursary funding cycles in 2026. This is to allow us to focus on the exceptional demand for targeted support caused as a result of the Mazur ruling. We cannot confirm our plans to resume these programmes at this stage.
We recommend that you speak to your employer, CILEX Customer Services or your chosen learning provider to explore funding options for CILEX courses.
2. I am worried about money; can I apply for cost-of-living grants from the CILEX Foundation?
The CILEX Foundation does not operate a welfare or cost-of-living grant programme.
CILEX Members are encouraged to explore income maximisation and debt management advice, through our partnership with PayPlan. Their specialist money advisors can offer budgeting, income maximisations and debt management advice for FREE, to all CILEX Members and their families.
Details of Payplan and our other support partners are listed on our website.
A focus on targeted support in 2026
In order to prioritise support for those most severely impacted by the Mazur ruling, the CILEX Foundation will not be offering Scholarships or Bursaries at this time. This temporary pause allows the Foundation to direct resources where they are most urgently needed.
This decision does not affect any members currently funded through an existing CILEX Foundation Scholarship or Bursary. All current funding arrangements will continue as agreed.
Support for all CILEX Members
The CILEX Foundation has partnered with specialist organisations to offer Members and their family access to expert advice and resources:
Currently, we are not accepting applications for financial welfare grants.
Support our work
Could you support our work, and contribute to a fairer, more diverse legal sector?
We offer individuals, employers, groups and networks the opportunity to get involved – through partnership, volunteering and fundraising to enable our important work to continue.
Stay up to date
The CILEX Foundation has a LinkedIn page which you can follow for news on our charitable work and partnerships, including future funding rounds.
Donate to us
A donation to the CILEX Foundation will support our work in providing opportunities to study and work in Law, to students from under-represented groups.
As an independent charity, we rely on the generosity of our donors.
Donate TodayCILEX Foundation registered charity number 1185862
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