Pupillage Vacancy Information
About 3PB Barristers
3PB is a friendly, inclusive and highly regarded national set with offices in Birmingham, Bournemouth, Bristol, London, Manchester, Oxford and Winchester. We offer specialism across a wide range of practice areas and are ranked in Chambers & Partners and Legal 500 for our expertise and service. Members are clerked by a national practice management team and appear in courts and tribunals throughout England and Wales, regardless of base location.
Opportunities for 2027
We are offering four specialist pupillages in 2027:
- Bristol – Family
- London – Education / Public & Administrative
- Oxford – Property & Chancery
- Winchester – Criminal
Pupils are expected to live and work within a reasonable commute of their chosen centre during and beyond pupillage. Applications will only be accepted for one of these pupillages; applications for non-advertised practice groups or centres will be rejected.
Pupillage Structure
A 3PB pupillage generally comprises three four-month seats with 3 different supervisors. You’ll shadow members, complete written work for members within your practice area and beyond, and receive regular feedback to help you develop core competences. Our practice management team plays an active role in pupil development, ensuring that you build strong professional relationships from the outset.
You’ll also take part in 3PB’s structured education programme, including advocacy assessments, symposia and training events designed to accelerate your progress.
3PB provides strong pastoral support through local pupillage liaisons, an in-house HR manager and external occupational health services. We are committed to equality, diversity and making reasonable adjustments for pupils with disabilities.
Financial and Other Support
The pupillage award is £60,000, comprising:
- £30,000 in the first six months
- £30,000 guaranteed billings in the second six (paid monthly in advance and set off against subsequent receipts so that you can focus on building experience and relationships without worrying about when you’ll next be paid)
No rent is charged on second-six earnings, so any income above £30,000 is yours in full.
Additional benefits worth around £17,500 include:
- Private health insurance with employee assistance programme
- Access to Perkbox rewards
- IT and technology discounts
- Wealth management advice
- Microsoft Office 365
- Online legal resources (LexisNexis PSL+, Westlaw, PLC)
Further details are available at www.3pb.co.uk/pupillage.
Equality, Diversity and Inclusion
We recruit fairly and transparently, identifying candidates who demonstrate:
- Intellectual ability
- Good judgment, professionalism and integrity
- Relationship-building and communication skills
- Capacity to manage the exigencies of a self-employed practice
- Clear commitment to the Bar, 3PB and the relevant centre
- Persuasive oral and written advocacy
Applications are anonymised to remove identifiable details. Each form is marked independently by two members of the relevant practice group. Interviews are structured and consistent to ensure fairness.
Candidates requiring reasonable adjustments to access the applications process should contact us in advance to discuss. We provide feedback on first- and second-round interviews upon request, but cannot offer feedback on written applications due to volume.
How to Apply
Aspiring barristers are invited to apply to chambers between 5 January 2026 and 22 January 2026 using the Pupillage Gateway application system to search for the relevant Pupillage Vacancy and selecting ‘Apply for this pupillage’. In addition to the standard Bar Council form, candidates must answer the following (maximum 4,000 characters each):
- Which pupillage you are applying for; why 3PB, why that practice area, and why that location?
- What quality or attribute do you feel will most likely contribute to your success at the Bar, and what experiences support this?
- Choose a recent judgment relevant to your chosen area, summarise it and explain why it’s significant.
- Tell us about a mistake you have made. How did you rectify it and what did you learn?
- Describe an obstacle that you have had to overcome and how you dealt with it.
- Tell us about a time you had difficulties with another person or group of people. What steps did you personally take to resolve the difficulties?
- Advocacy can take many forms. What advocacy experience do you have? Please describe one occasion on which you believe your advocacy made a difference and why.
First-round interviews: via Teams, week commencing 16 March 2026
Second-round interviews: in person at your chosen centre, week commencing 20 April 2026. Chambers will cover reasonable travel expenses for the second round.
For insight from current and former pupils, see our Pupillage Centre and webinar “To Pupillage and Beyond” at www.3pb.co.uk/pupillage.
Tenancies
While tenancy cannot be guaranteed, 3PB has an excellent retention rate. Every pupil is considered a potential future tenant.
