QASA Registration “How to” Guide

Transcription

QASA Registration “How to” Guide
A guide to online registration for the Quality Assurance Scheme for Advocates
Version 2
Published: April 2014
BAR STANDARDS BOARD
Guide to online registration for QASA
Contents
Introduction
4
How to register for QASA accreditation
5
-
Accessing Barrister Connect
5
-
Logging in to Barrister Connect and accessing QASA
6
-
Pupil registration
8
-
Queen's Counsel (QC) registration
20
-
Registration neither as a QC nor pupil
12
o
Non-trial accreditation
13
o
Full-trial accreditation
14
-
Answering the notification questions
15
-
Answering the equality and diversity monitoring questions
17
-
Making payment
18
Consolidating your provisional accreditation into full accreditation
-
QASA Home Page
20
20
o
Pupil accreditation and accreditation at Level 1
20
o
Accreditation as a non-trial advocate
21
o
QC accreditation for QCs appointed between 2010 and 2013
22
o
QC accreditation for QCs appointed before 2010
23
o
Accreditation neither as a pupil, non-trial advocate nor QC
24
-
Viewing and submitting your Criminal Advocacy Evaluation Form (CAEF)
26
-
How to request an Independent Assessor
32
-
How to request an Extension
33
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BAR STANDARDS BOARD
Introduction
The Quality Assurance Scheme for Advocates (QASA) is a joint scheme being developed by the Bar Standards
Board, the Solicitors Regulation Authority and ILEX Professional Standards. The Scheme will regulate the quality of all
advocates appearing in the criminal courts in England and Wales, whether they are barristers, solicitors, or legal
executives. The Scheme will apply to all advocates, whether they are self-employed or employed, and whether they
are acting for the prosecution or defence.
For further information regarding the Scheme please refer to the QASA section of the Bar Standard's Board website,
accessible at https://www.barstandardsboard.org.uk/QASA/.
This illustrated document will guide you each of the required steps for registering for QASA using the online portal,
Barrister Connect.
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BAR STANDARDS BOARD
How to register for QASA accreditation
This section will inform you how to initially register for the Quality Assurance Scheme for Advocates (QASA), using
Barrister Connect.
Accessing Barrister Connect
In order to access Barrister Connect, go to www.barristerconnect.org.uk.
Alternatively Barrister Connect is easily accessible through the Bar Standards Board website; located in the top right
hand corner on the home page (as shown in the screen-shot below).
“Bar Standards Board Home-Page”; accessed at https://www.barstandardsboard.org.uk, on 2 April 2014.
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BAR STANDARDS BOARD
Logging in to Barrister Connect and accessing QASA
Once you have accessed Barrister Connect, you will be presented with the log in screen (as shown in the screen-shot
below) and you will be prompted to log in using your user number and password. Next, log in to Barrister Connect
using these details.
-
If you are logging on for the first time, please follow this how-to-guide; accessed at
https://www.barstandardsboard.org.uk/media/1408895/barrister_connect_guidance_-_may_2012_gg.pdf
-
Alternatively, if at this stage you do not know your log in details or are having difficulty logging in please
contact the Records Office on 020 7242 0934 or email BarristerConnect@BarCouncil.org.uk.
Enter your Login Details in the spaces provided
Once logged in you are automatically guided to your bespoke home screen. Here a number of options are available to
you dependant on your membership and practising status. Next click on the QASA tab (as shown in the screen-shot
on the following page) which will take you through to the QASA section of Barrister Connect.
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BAR STANDARDS BOARD
PLEASE NOTE, if you are a pupil and do not yet have a Barrister Connect user number, please contact the Records
Office on 020 7242 0934 or email BarristerConnect@BarCouncil.org.uk for further instructions.
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Pupil registration
Those registering for QASA as a pupil, either during your second six or within 14 days of doing so, will be greeted with
the below screen.
In this instance, simply click “Apply for full-trial accreditation” to proceed to the next stage of the registration
process.
As a pupil, you will be automatically registered at QASA Level 1. Confirmation of your application as a Level 1
Advocate will then be displayed in the following screen (as shown in the screen-shot on the following page) along with
a brief description of the work you will now be entitled to undertake.
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For any further details on pupil registration, please refer to section 2 of the QASA Handbook for criminal
advocates, available within the Key QASA Materials section of the Bar Standards Board Website.
Click “continue” to progress to the next stage of the registration process.
Please now proceed directly to the “Answering the equality and diversity monitoring questions” section of
this “How to” Guide, on page 17.
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BAR STANDARDS BOARD
Queen’s Counsel (QC) registration
Those registering for QASA as a Queen’s Counsel (QC) will be greeted with an identical screen to those at Pupil
Registration (as shown above on page 8). Again, simply click “Apply for accreditation” to proceed to the next stage of
the registration process.
As a QC, you will be automatically given the option to register at QASA Level 4QC. Confirmation of your application as
a Level 4QC Advocate will then be displayed in the following screen (as shown in the screen-shots below) along with
a brief description of the work you will now be entitled to undertake. There is also some further information regarding
accreditation for QCs appointed before and after 2010.
o
Those who were appointed between 2010 and 2013 will receive full accreditation for the Scheme at Level 4
QC, with their 5 year accreditation running from the date they were appointed QC.
o
Those appointed before 2010 will be granted provisional accreditation at Level 4QC.
Should you not wish to register as a Level 4QC, and instead want to register at a lower level for QASA, please contact
us by email at QASA@barstandardsboard.org.uk.
-
For any further details on registration as a Queens Counsel, please refer to section 2 of the QASA
Handbook for criminal advocates, available within the Key QASA Materials section of the Bar Standards
Board Website.
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BAR STANDARDS BOARD
Please now proceed directly to the “Answering the notification questions” section of this “How to” Guide, on
page 15.
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Registration neither as a QC nor pupil
Those who are neither a QC nor a pupil, when selecting the QASA tab, will be greeted with a slightly different screen
(as shown in the screen-shots below).
-
For further details on registration neither as a QC nor pupil, please refer to section 2 of the QASA
Handbook for criminal advocates, available within the Key QASA Materials section of the Bar Standards
Board Website.
You will be asked whether you wish to register for QASA as a “full-trial” advocate or as a “non-trial” advocate. Make
your selection by clicking on the respective tab.
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BAR STANDARDS BOARD
Non-trial accreditation
Those who have selected non-trial accreditation will be shown confirmation of their application as a non-trial advocate
in the following screen (as shown in the screen-shot below), along with a brief description of the work they will now be
entitled to undertake.
Those who complete the initial registration stage as a non-trial advocate will be granted provisional accreditation as a
non-trial advocate.
Please now proceed directly to the “Answering the notification questions” section of this “How to” Guide on
page 15.
Full-trial accreditation
Those who have selected full-trial accreditation will be required to select the QASA level which you are going to
register at. On the next page, you will be greeted with a table (as shown in the screen-shots on the following page)
which offer brief descriptions of the work you will be entitled to undertake at each level.
-
For further guidance in relation to the levels, please refer to section 3 of the QASA Handbook for criminal
advocates, available within the Key QASA Materials section of the Bar Standards Board Website.
Once you have made your selection, scroll down the page and select it from the options available using the drop-down
box (as shown in the screen-shots on the following page). Next, click on “Apply for Accreditation” to progress to the
next stage of registration.
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BAR STANDARDS BOARD
In this instance, QASA Level 3 has been selected.
Once you have made your selection, click “continue” to progress to the next stage of the registration process.
Please now proceed directly to the “Answering the notification questions” section of this “How to” Guide on
page 15.
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BAR STANDARDS BOARD
Answering the notification questions
Now that you successfully selected your QASA level, or if it has been automatically selected for you as a QC, you are
required to answer notification questions based on your current practice.
Please answer all of the notification questions (even if the answer is 0) in the boxes shown on this page (as shown in
the screen-shot below).
If you have chosen to register as a “Non-Trial Advocate”, you will be greeted with a slightly different set of
notification questions (as shown in the screen-shot on the following page). As above, please answer all of the
notification questions (even if the answer is 0).
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Once you have answered your questions accurately, click “continue” to progress to the next stage of the registration
process.
Please now proceed directly to the “Answering the equality and diversity monitoring questions” section of
this “How to” Guide on page 17.
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BAR STANDARDS BOARD
Answering the equality and diversity monitoring questions
The next stage involves answering monitoring questions (as shown in the screen-shot below). These are entirely
optional and should you wish to answer, please select the answer from the drop-down box provided.
Data collected will be analysed in order to identify any trends and to help monitor progress against Bar Council and
BSB equality objectives - these are available on the Bar Council website. If you have any concerns about this data
collection exercise, please contact Pamela Bhalla, Bar Council Equality and Diversity Adviser
at Smercer@barcouncil.org.uk, or via telephone on 0207 611 1320.
Once you have answered your questions, or chosen not to answer your questions, click “submit your details” to
progress to the next stage of the registration process.
Please now proceed directly to the “Making payment” section of this “How to” Guide on page 18.
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BAR STANDARDS BOARD
Making payment
Now that you have completed the monitoring questions section of the registration process, you will be prompted to
make payment. A summary of the payment will be presented to you (as shown in the screen-shot below) displaying
the level of your application and the price affiliated with this. This may differ to the screen-shot shown below,
depending on the level which you have chosen to accredit at and its’ respective cost.
-
For further details on payment please further to the QASA Administration FAQs, located in the QASA
section of the Bar Standards Board Website.
You will then be prompted to follow the on-screen instructions to finalise your payment. Once completed, a receipt of
the transaction, confirming your application, will be automatically sent to the email address which you have provided to
Barrister Connect.
PLEASE NOTE, payment may only be made online.
Should payment prove unsuccessful you will be greeted with an error message informing you that payment
has not been completed. If this occurs, please contact your card provider to resolve the issue. Once the issue
has been resolved, log out of Barrister Connect and back in again to repeat the registration process.
You will then be greeted with a confirmation page (as shown in the screen-shot on the following page), confirming
your Accreditation at your chosen level. The message with which you are greeted with will of course differ slightly
depending on the QASA Level you have chosen to register at, as well as your current practising or membership
status.
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BAR STANDARDS BOARD
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Consolidating your provisional accreditation into full accreditation
This section will inform you how to consolidate your provisional QASA accreditation into full accreditation using
Barrister Connect.
QASA Home Page
Now that you have obtained provisional accreditation at your chosen level, the next time you access the QASA tab
within Barrister Connect it will show your current level and this will continue to display on your “QASA Home Page”.
This page will be a bespoke page which tailors to the level which you have chosen or been automatically allocated, to
accredit at.
Pupil accreditation and accreditation at Level 1
Should you have registered as a pupil or at Level 1, you will have automatically been granted Full
Accreditation at QASA Level 1. You will now have completed your registration process and will be presented with a
bespoke “QASA Home Page” relating to advocates whom have registered at Level 1 (as shown in the screen-shots
below).
-
For further information relating to accreditation as a QASA Level 1 advocate, please refer to the QASA
Handbook for criminal advocates, located in the Key QASA Materials section of the Bar Standards Board
website.
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BAR STANDARDS BOARD
As a level 1 advocate, you will have the opportunity to progress to the next level either as a full-trial advocate or a nontrial advocate at any time. Further details of these requirements and the progression process can be found within the
QASA Handbook for criminal advocates, located in the Key QASA Materials section of the Bar Standards Board
website.
If you would like to see a detailed step by step guide to support the progression process, please access the
Progression “How to” Guide, which will shortly be available in the Key QASA Materials section of the Bar Standards
Board website.
Accreditation as a non-trial advocate
Should you have registered as a non-trial advocate, you will now arrive at a bespoke “QASA Home Page”
detailing your provisional accreditation at the non-trial level (as shown in the screen-shot on the following page).
-
For further information relating to accreditation as a QASA non-trial advocate, please refer to section 2 of
the QASA Handbook for criminal advocates, located in the Key QASA Materials section of the Bar
Standards Board website.
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BAR STANDARDS BOARD
You must apply for full accreditation within 24 months of the date that you were granted provisional accreditation as a
non-trial advocate. You should not wait until the end of the 24 month period to make your application, if you are in a
position to do so earlier. Your application for full accreditation should be made as soon as is practicable.
In order to consolidate your provisional accreditation into full accreditation, click “Confirm your non-trial
accreditation” to progress to the next stage of the registration process.
Please now proceed directly to the “Viewing and submitting your Criminal Advocacy Evaluation Form
(CAEF)” section of this “How to” Guide on page 26.
QC accreditation for QCs appointed between 2010 and 2013
Should you have registered as a QC who has been appointed after 2010, you will have automatically been
granted Full Accreditation at QASA Level 4QC. You will now have completed your registration process and will be
presented with a bespoke “QASA Home Page” relating to advocates whom have registered at Level 4QC (as shown in
the screen-shot on the following page).
-
For further information relating to accreditation as a QASA Level 4QC advocate, please refer to section 2
of the QASA Handbook for criminal advocates, located in the Key QASA Materials section of the Bar
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BAR STANDARDS BOARD
QC accreditation for QCs appointed before 2010
Should you have registered as a QC who has been appointed before 2010 you will now arrive at a bespoke
“QASA Home Page” detailing your provisional accreditation at Level 4QC (as shown in the screen-shot on the
following page).
-
For further information relating to accreditation as a QASA Level 4QC advocate, please refer to section 2
of the QASA Handbook for criminal advocates, located in the Key QASA Materials section of the Bar
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BAR STANDARDS BOARD
You must apply for full accreditation within 24 months of the date that you were granted provisional accreditation at
Level 4QC. You should not wait until the end of the 24 month period to make your application, if you are in a position
to do so earlier. Your application for full accreditation should be made as soon as is practicable.
In order to consolidate your provisional accreditation into full accreditation, click “Apply for full accreditation” to
Accreditation neither as a pupil, non-trial advocate nor QC
Should you have registered neither as a pupil, non-trial advocate nor QC, you will now arrive at a bespoke
“QASA Home Page” detailing your provisional accreditation at your chosen level (as shown in the screen-shot
on the following page).
-
For further information relating to accreditation, please refer to section 2 of the QASA Handbook for
criminal advocates, located in the Key QASA Materials section of the Bar Standards Board website.
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BAR STANDARDS BOARD
You must apply for full accreditation within 24 months of the date that you were granted provisional accreditation your
chosen level. You should not wait until the end of the 24 month period to make your application, if you are in a position
to do so earlier. Your application for full accreditation should be made as soon as is practicable.
In order to consolidate your provisional accreditation into full accreditation, click “Apply for full accreditation” to
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BAR STANDARDS BOARD
Viewing and submitting your Criminal Advocacy Evaluation Form (CAEF)
Now that you have chosen to apply for full accreditation, you will be presented with the “Submit your application” page
(as shown in the screen-shot below).
In the majority instances, the evaluator will return your completed CAEF to the Bar Standards Board. You will receive
a notification email when each form has been uploaded, and it will be accessible within this page. Should you have
received the completed CAEF directly from the evaluator, please upload this using the “Add CAEF Document”
feature.
Please now select “Add CAEF Document” to start uploading your evidence.
Should you have chosen to register as a non-trial advocate, you will be greeted with an identical screen (as
shown in the screen-shot on the following page).
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BAR STANDARDS BOARD
You will now be presented with the CAEF upload screen (as shown in the screen-shot on the following page). When
uploading your CAEF, you are required to enter the details of the case during which you have were assessed. You will
be required to enter the title/name of the case, the court or assessment centre, in which your evaluation took place,
the name of the evaluator who completed your assessment and the date on which it occurred.
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BAR STANDARDS BOARD
You will be able to select the court or assessment centre, where you evaluation took place from the drop-down list
which will be automatically engaged once you start typing its name. You will also be able to select the evaluator,
whether this be a judge, independent assessor or assessment centre evaluator, and this can be done by entering their
surname and selecting again from the drop-down list (as shown in the two following screen-shots below).
-
PLEASE NOTE, if you are unable to find the court or assessment centre where your evaluation took
place, or your evaluator from their respective drop-down lists, please email
QASA@BarStandardsBoard.org.uk.
Finally you will need to upload the CAEF by attaching it in the box provided, by clicking “choose file”, and selecting
the file you wish to upload. PLEASE NOTE, before uploading your scanned form, please ensure that it:-
is scanned in colour or grey-scale format;
is in a high resolution;
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BAR STANDARDS BOARD
-
is scanned without any alterations to its original size (scaling); and
is in pdf. format.
Once you have selected your file and filled in the required information accordingly, click “Upload”, where upon you will
be returned to the previous “Submit your application” page. Repeat this process until you have successfully uploaded
the required number of CAEFs for your chosen level.
Once you have successfully uploaded the required number of CAEFs, your CAEF upload screen should now give you
the option to submit your application in the green box towards the bottom of the page (as shown in the screen-shot
below). Click “Submit application” to continue to the final stage of the registration process.
Once you have chosen to submit your application, simply confirm that you make the “Declaration of Truth” (as shown
in the screen-shot on the following page) to complete your QASA application.
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BAR STANDARDS BOARD
You have now successfully submitted your application to the QASA Scheme. You will be presented with a
confirmation page and an automated email, confirming your submission, will be sent to the email address registered to
your Barrister Connect profile.
Your application will be assessed and verified, and the outcome will be emailed to you within 28 working days. During
this period you are permitted to continue practising criminal advocacy at your current level. Whenever you attempt to
access the QASA section of Barrister Connect during this time, you will be presented with an application submitted
page (as shown in the screen-shot on the following page).
-
Should you have not received this email or have any further enquiries at this point, please contact
QASA@barstandardsboard.org.uk or telephone 020 7611 1479.
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BAR STANDARDS BOARD
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How to Request an Independent Assessor
If you are unable to obtain the requisite number of CAEFs to support your QASA application, you will be able to
request an Independent Assessor. In order to do this, click the “Request independent assessor” option which is
available at the bottom of the “Submit your application” page. This will prompt further information relating to the
requesting process to appear (as shown in the screen-shot below).
-
For further details on Independent Assessment, please refer to section 2 of the QASA Handbook for
criminal advocates, located in the Key QASA Materials section of the Bar Standards Board website.
You will then be required to provide a reason in support of your request for an independent assessment. Type the
reason for your request (a 500 word limit applies here) and click “submit”.
-
PLEASE NOTE once you have requested an independent assessment you will be unable to do anything
else on Barrister Connect until your request has been verified.
Your request will be assessed and the outcome will be emailed to you within 28 working days, along with any further
instructions. You may be asked to provide additional information in support of your request. During this period you are
permitted to continue practising criminal advocacy at your current level.
Whenever you log back in, you will be greeted with the page (as shown in the screen-shot above).
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BAR STANDARDS BOARD
How to make an Extension
Applications for an extension can be made 6 months prior to your provisional accreditation date of expiry. During the
final 6 months of your provisional accreditation window, an option will become available on Barrister Connect where
extension requests can be made. This will be available on the “Submit your application” page.
-
For further details on the extension process, please refer to section 2 of the QASA Handbook for criminal
advocates, located in the Key QASA Materials section of the Bar Standards Board website.
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QASA Registration “How to” Guide

Transcription

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