Funding Pro Bono

By its very nature, pro bono or voluntary work is generally unpaid and the same can be said of internships. Some organisations may provide a small stipend or cover your expenses, but you will usually have to find all or most of the placement costs yourself. This page summarises the options open to you to find these costs.

Option 1: Work & Save

The most obvious solution, but often overlooked. Remember, delaying your placement by a few months to save cash isn’t a bad thing – you’ll still be as useful to the organisation when you finally begin your placement and more importantly, you’ll have additional skills to add to your c.v.

There are several ways of doing this:

•	Work full time for three or four months and save your earnings, then undertake a 3 month placement. Keep doing this and you can undertake as many placements as you have the energy to undertake!
•	Work non stop for 6 months or longer, and then undertake a longer placement of 6 months.
•	Undertake part-time work on an ongoing basis, and take on a part-time placement alongside. You could potentially work for an organisation for 12 months or longer doing this.

How do you obtain the work? The best route is via temping – get to know a couple and you should be able to keep returning for work as and when you need it.

Option 2: Grants and Scholarships

Rather like gold dust, everybody wants one of these but few manage to find them. Here are some suggestions:

Sources of potential Sponsorship

•	Law Firms
	»	Have you completed a vacation placement with a law firm? Try asking if they might be able to make a contribution towards your placement – even £100 helps and if you can sell it to the firm by emphasising the positive publicity they would obtain.
	»	Or if you have a training contact lined up, discuss ways in which the firm might be able to assist: by matching the amount you manage to raise; by donating a sum to assist with specific aspects of your placement; or even by advancing a small portion of your salary in the form of a loan.

•	Chambers
	»	Again, if you’ve completed a mini pupillage, it’s worth asking individual members of chambers or chambers as a whole if they would like to donate something towards your placement.

•	Inns of Court
	»	Several Inns offer scholarships specifically for internships. Previous interns report having received awards ranging from partial (the cost of the flight for example) to full funding. If you do apply, be aware that you will usually be required to provide a breakdown of the likely costs involved so it’s worth getting an idea of budget before you contact your Inn , just in case their application deadline is fast approaching!

•	Law Schools / Universities
	»	It’s also worth investigating possibilities at your law school or university. Societies, faculties and other bodies may offer scholarships / grants towards overseas travel, or grants towards local community involvement. If you have a pro bono unit there may be funds to help establish new areas of pro bono work, or to help with expenses incurred in pro bono placements.

•	Other sources
	»	Depending on the placement you are seeking to fund, local companies and organisations may also be able to assist. Using your legal skills to present a good case will help! Benefits can include local publicity – you can send out a press release explaining what you are doing and specifically mentioning local companies that have helped you with fundraising.
	»	Organisations such as your local Rotary Club (http://www.rotary-ribi.org), Lions Club (www.lionsclubs.org) or Women’s Institute might be able to provide a small donation, in return for presentations on your experiences.
	»	Visit your local library and search for information on local grant making trusts or bodies.
	»	Search the Directory of Grant Making Trusts for Individuals, also available at your local library
	»	Use online sites such as Funderfinder to see if any scholarships are open to you
	»	Check out individual charities and NGOs - some offer competitive grants for internships several times per year

Option 3: Borrow

Less popular, but frequently the only solution. If you are going to borrow money remember to be sensible, work out what you can afford, set a budget for your placement and stick to it!

•	Banks: Ask about Graduate Development Loans if you have a job offer or assets.
•	Career Development Loans: These can be taken out for the LPC or BVC – if you don’t need the whole loan that is available then take out the additional amount and use it to fund an internship, enabling you to repay the cost of an internship over several years.
•	Overdrafts: Take advantage of the interest free overdraft that extends for a couple of years after you cease to be a student, use it for the placement and then work it off gradually.
•	Family: perhaps someone can loan you part of your costs – make sure you agree when and how you will repay them though or there could be problems later on.
•	Presents: instead of presents, ask for money for Christmas and birthdays explaining you are saving for a placement. Alternatively, break down your costs into a list and pass it around family and friends so that people can “buy” that particular item for you as a present.
•	Friends: persuade 20 friends to loan you £50 for one year (bringing in £1000), after which you can agree how you will replay them. As interest, send them a fortnightly email about your placement and what you’re doing – allowing them to see how their investment has benefited you. But make sure you pay them back!

Option 4: If all else fails

•	Ebay: clear out your belongings and sell them online
•	Fundraise locally: contact local papers about what you are doing for free publicity and the chance of individual donations.
•	Fundraise online with a personal website.
•	Carry out odd jobs for people, keep an eye on odd job websites.
•	Find what you CAN afford and take that placement – this increases your chance of future funding for the placement that you would love to undertake.
•	Look at the feedback on our database to see how others funded themselves.
•	Remember essay writing competitions often include a cash prize….
•	Organise a jumble / car boot sale at a local sports ground, community centre etc; charge a fee for people to have a pitch and split the money raised between your voluntary work and the sports club/community centre/church etc. Selling all your belongings and receiving pitch fees from everyone else there can bring in a decent amount of cash.
•	Organise a fantasy football competition and use some of the entry fees as prize money, with the rest going towards your volunteering.
•	Or organise a quiz night in your local pub.
•	Above all, be imaginative!