BSB seeks savings in response to the coronavirus crisis

The Bar Standards Board (BSB) has joined the Bar Council in implementing a pay and recruitment freeze, which aims to deliver a saving of £110,000 in its budget.  The Chair, Vice-Chair and Director General of the BSB have also joined the heads of the Bar Council in taking a voluntary 20% pay cut.

The Resources Group, which is the shared services team that serves both the Bar Council and the BSB, has also furloughed 15% of its staff (six roles out of 41). Regulatory demands, such as the need to make new arrangements for Bar students whose exams have been delayed and to help the Bar to maintain pupillages, mean that the BSB has been unable to furlough staff now.

Mark Neale, Director General of the Bar Standards Board, said: “For the BSB, as regulator of the Bar, the current crisis has actually increased workloads in several areas.   We are working hard, for example, to ensure that students who were unable to take their Bar exams in April have the chance to take them as soon as possible and to support the Bar as it seeks to maintain pupillage opportunities.  But we shall continue to seek savings wherever we can.”

Source: www.barstandardsboard.org.uk.