My vacation placement experiences with the Crown Prosecution Service

Securing a vacation placement

I initially got involved with the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) through my university. A number of students came together to meet with senior CPS representatives to discuss the opportunity of work experience. I was impressed with what I heard and decided to apply.

Vacation placement experiences

The placement lasted a week and gave me insight into what it would be like to work for the CPS. I was involved with work for both the Crown Court and the magistrates’ court, helped in case preparation and attended a conference with leading counsel on a rape case. The combined experience certainly whetted my appetite for working as a prosecutor.

'The experience whetted my appetite for working as a prosecutor'

Life as a trainee

The experience has not been wholly different from my placement. I get to undertake a variety of court work and have gained limited rights of audience in the magistrates’ court. I work on files given to me and attend conferences with counsel when required. There’s a great deal of variety in the work I do and my supervisor is very good about giving me a broad scope of files to work on. It can be a little daunting coping with a large list of files in court first thing on a Monday morning though! Initially I failed to secure a training contract with the CPS but worked for them in an administration capacity; this lead to a training contract the following year. It’s important not to give up at the first hurdle.