Legal Afghan Working Group

 LAWG's first priority was the provision of English language courses. Without fluency of language, former Afghan judges and lawyers will not be able to re-establish their legal careers in the UK.

Since December 2021, LAWG has partnered with non-profit, British Council-accredited Hilderstone College to deliver online English lessons to our participants. The classes have proved to be of dependably high quality, with a strong and consistent tutorial relationship. 

LAWG funding is currently providing six hours of online English training per week for our Afghan participants, with programmed study time in between those lessons. All our participants are tested frequently to confirm their progress. Some participants in the standardised tests are already achieving English competencies at or close to university admissions’ standards.  

Dedicated attendance is required of everyone.  They all do attend, in full, and with great energy and determination.

Over the last year LAWG has provided a weekly series of online lectures as an introduction to English Law, as well as many aspects of public administration in civil society. 

Our participants are being educated in aspects of constitutional conventions, commercial and civil law topics, citizenship and law.  Those delivering the material have included academics and a variety of practitioners, solicitors and barristers. Topics have ranged across subjects as varied as the work of Coroners’ and Magistrates’ Courts to landlord and tenant law, human rights, sources of English law, the structures of the legal profession and preparation for employment.

Finding employment for our participants is the ultimate goal of our beneficiaries themselves and of LAWG.

In the coming year we are working with partners at law firms and other organisations to provide fortnightly vocational workshops. Topics will range from CV writing, the skill of networking and where to look for legal jobs, to a week in the life of a trainee solicitor. 

In addition to this are quarterly in-person seminars, where our participants can meet. These on-site events are intended to build confidence and familiarity and to encourage imminent or immediate applications and preparations, with participants taking ownership of such activities, learning from mistakes and rebuffs as well as benefitting from opportunities and openings. Topics covered will include the work, function and output and the variety of roles in a law firm to a panel of speakers discussing their ‘typical day’.  We also encourage networking sessions where participants can get to know the culture of UK law firms.  

LAWG's programme builds relationships between Afghan legal professionals who have been resettled in different locations. It makes connections between them and people working in the English legal sector. A mix of online and face-to-face workshops ensures both consistent engagement and personal relationships. 

After a year of operation, many of the refugees LAWG has supported have moved into jobs or education. The programme provides job-hunting support and networks tailored to their specific industry, as well as a formal English qualification, to help others make the same transition and realise their potential. 

Providing this support soon after they arrive in the UK prevents refugees falling into unemployment and exclusion which can be difficult to escape. 

“From the start, I felt the outstretched hand of LAWG”

“You have provided us with a lifeline, empowering us to face the challenges we have encountered and helping us rebuild our futures”