City Consortium Programme (CCP) at BPP

[JoshP5555]

Hello,
I'll be starting the SQE/CCP at BPP Holborn in September 2024. I have a few questions which it would really help to know the answers to in order to plan my year (accommodation, travel, work, etc.). Could anyone who did the course this year shed some light? (Obviously, I recognise there could be differences between this past year and next year, but it would be really helpful to have a rough idea.)
I know it's a 12-month course, and I know it starts on 2nd Sep - but literally nothing else. I actually went to BPP Holborn last week and tried to ask them, but they wouldn't provide any information.

1. How many contact hours did you have per week? I've heard 10, but would like confirmation.
2. How many days a week were the contact hours spread out over? (I recognise this will vary by group, but were most groups having to go in 5 days a week?)
3. Were there any socials/opportunities to meet students in other groups?
4. When were the exams?
- BPP internal exams
- SQE exams (I think SQE1 is in January, but when is SQE2? In particular, when does it end? Do you get a summer holiday?)
5. Were there any holidays or reading weeks, and if so, when were they?
6. What was the Plus Programme like? Was it intense? Were there exams?
7. If you can be bothered after all my other questions - any advice?

Any responses hugely appreciated!

 

[j.s.cox]

Hi!

I'm currently on the CCP at BPP.

1. There are 10 contact hours/week each term (2 hours/workshop, 5 workshops/week).
2. The hours are spread over 3-5 days/week.
3. You are mixed into different groups after the first term and there are a few mixing opportunities, but these are limited.
4. BPP Exams: End of December (SQE 1), Every 3 weeks in term 2 for the Plus Programme. There is also coursework every term including Term 3 in the summer. SQE Exams: January (SQE1), August (SQE2), unfortunately there is no summer break.
5. There is a reading week halfway through Term 1, a break to revise for SQE1 between December and the exams in January and a 2-week break in term 2 (around March time).
6. Plus Programme is 4 seats (Listed Companies, Commercial Disputes & Investigations, Private M&A, Debt Finance). They are actually really useful for practice. There is a lot of reading, but the term is considerably easier than the SQE1 term. There is an MCQ summative every 3 weeks, then a 1-hour written exam/seat (4 altogether) the week after the final MCQ summative. There is also a group project, a task on Apply that is compulsory, and a Behaviour Portfolio. The Portfolio includes a development record, 3 evidence sheets, and a reflective essay. It's quite a lot of work, but very doable.
7. Advice:
   1. Revise underlying law before you start as you won't have time in the first term and the SQE is a really difficult exam.
   2. Try to stay 1 week ahead on the reading to give yourself some breathing room if you find a concept difficult.
   3. Do the apply tasks in the first term as it will help you with the coursework later on.
   4. Get the ReviseSQE books as they are considerably better than BPP's materials. You will be fine if you use just BPP's materials, especially for the new subjects, but the ReviseSQE books appear to be both more concise and contain more content.
   5. Do some practice MCQs ahead of SQE1. BPP has some and they give you access to OUP's questions. I highly recommend ReviseSQE and QLTS for additional MCQs as I found these to be of a closer standard to the exam. The SRA also has some which are useful, but much easier than the SQE1.
   6. Can't think of any more now, but will add some if I remember.

 

[verybadvitamins]

Hi!

I'm currently on the CCP at BPP.

1. There are 10 contact hours/week each term (2 hours/workshop, 5 workshops/week).
2. The hours are spread over 3-5 days/week.
3. You are mixed into different groups after the first term and there are a few mixing opportunities, but these are limited.
4. BPP Exams: End of December (SQE 1), Every 3 weeks in term 2 for the Plus Programme. There is also coursework every term including Term 3 in the summer. SQE Exams: January (SQE1), August (SQE2), unfortunately there is no summer break.
5. There is a reading week halfway through Term 1, a break to revise for SQE1 between December and the exams in January and a 2-week break in term 2 (around March time).
6. Plus Programme is 4 seats (Listed Companies, Commercial Disputes & Investigations, Private M&A, Debt Finance). They are actually really useful for practice. There is a lot of reading, but the term is considerably easier than the SQE1 term. There is an MCQ summative every 3 weeks, then a 1-hour written exam/seat (4 altogether) the week after the final MCQ summative. There is also a group project, a task on Apply that is compulsory, and a Behaviour Portfolio. The Portfolio includes a development record, 3 evidence sheets, and a reflective essay. It's quite a lot of work, but very doable.
7. Advice:
   1. Revise underlying law before you start as you won't have time in the first term and the SQE is a really difficult exam.
   2. Try to stay 1 week ahead on the reading to give yourself some breathing room if you find a concept difficult.
   3. Do the apply tasks in the first term as it will help you with the coursework later on.
   4. Get the ReviseSQE books as they are considerably better than BPP's materials. You will be fine if you use just BPP's materials, especially for the new subjects, but the ReviseSQE books appear to be both more concise and contain more content.
   5. Do some practice MCQs ahead of SQE1. BPP has some and they give you access to OUP's questions. I highly recommend ReviseSQE and QLTS for additional MCQs as I found these to be of a closer standard to the exam. The SRA also has some which are useful, but much easier than the SQE1.
   6. Can't think of any more now, but will add some if I remember.

Hi,

Would you recommend using the ReviseSQE books to study before starting the CCP, or are there other books that are more beneficial for underlying law to use before starting?

Thanks!!

 

[j.s.cox]

Hi,

Would you recommend using the ReviseSQE books to study before starting the CCP, or are there other books that are more beneficial for underlying law to use before starting?

Thanks!!

I reckon they are really good to use before starting the CCP as they only contain what you need to know.

 

[cmcdumas]

Hello,
I'll be starting the SQE/CCP at BPP Holborn in September 2024. I have a few questions which it would really help to know the answers to in order to plan my year (accommodation, travel, work, etc.). Could anyone who did the course this year shed some light? (Obviously, I recognise there could be differences between this past year and next year, but it would be really helpful to have a rough idea.)
I know it's a 12-month course, and I know it starts on 2nd Sep - but literally nothing else. I actually went to BPP Holborn last week and tried to ask them, but they wouldn't provide any information.

1. How many contact hours did you have per week? I've heard 10, but would like confirmation.
2. How many days a week were the contact hours spread out over? (I recognise this will vary by group, but were most groups having to go in 5 days a week?)
3. Were there any socials/opportunities to meet students in other groups?
4. When were the exams?
- BPP internal exams
- SQE exams (I think SQE1 is in January, but when is SQE2? In particular, when does it end? Do you get a summer holiday?)
5. Were there any holidays or reading weeks, and if so, when were they?
6. What was the Plus Programme like? Was it intense? Were there exams?
7. If you can be bothered after all my other questions - any advice?

Any responses hugely appreciated!

Hi!

I'm currently on the CCP at BPP.

1. There are 10 contact hours/week each term (2 hours/workshop, 5 workshops/week).
2. The hours are spread over 3-5 days/week.
3. You are mixed into different groups after the first term and there are a few mixing opportunities, but these are limited.
4. BPP Exams: End of December (SQE 1), Every 3 weeks in term 2 for the Plus Programme. There is also coursework every term including Term 3 in the summer. SQE Exams: January (SQE1), August (SQE2), unfortunately there is no summer break.
5. There is a reading week halfway through Term 1, a break to revise for SQE1 between December and the exams in January and a 2-week break in term 2 (around March time).
6. Plus Programme is 4 seats (Listed Companies, Commercial Disputes & Investigations, Private M&A, Debt Finance). They are actually really useful for practice. There is a lot of reading, but the term is considerably easier than the SQE1 term. There is an MCQ summative every 3 weeks, then a 1-hour written exam/seat (4 altogether) the week after the final MCQ summative. There is also a group project, a task on Apply that is compulsory, and a Behaviour Portfolio. The Portfolio includes a development record, 3 evidence sheets, and a reflective essay. It's quite a lot of work, but very doable.
7. Advice:
   1. Revise underlying law before you start as you won't have time in the first term and the SQE is a really difficult exam.
   2. Try to stay 1 week ahead on the reading to give yourself some breathing room if you find a concept difficult.
   3. Do the apply tasks in the first term as it will help you with the coursework later on.
   4. Get the ReviseSQE books as they are considerably better than BPP's materials. You will be fine if you use just BPP's materials, especially for the new subjects, but the ReviseSQE books appear to be both more concise and contain more content.
   5. Do some practice MCQs ahead of SQE1. BPP has some and they give you access to OUP's questions. I highly recommend ReviseSQE and QLTS for additional MCQs as I found these to be of a closer standard to the exam. The SRA also has some which are useful, but much easier than the SQE1.
   6. Can't think of any more now, but will add some if I remember.

Thanks a ton for your detailed response. BPP has not provided any information whatsoever - to the point where the silence is now absurd! I'm considering getting the ReviseSQE books and working through them in July and August before beginning the SQE1 prep at BPP in September. Do you recommend getting all the textbooks that pertain to the SQE1 topics? I'm worried that might be too expensive. Would greatly appreciate any advice on what topics to focus on (will definitely be doing crim, land, and torts).
Thanks in advance!

 

[JoshP5555]

Hi!

I'm currently on the CCP at BPP.

1. There are 10 contact hours/week each term (2 hours/workshop, 5 workshops/week).
2. The hours are spread over 3-5 days/week.
3. You are mixed into different groups after the first term and there are a few mixing opportunities, but these are limited.
4. BPP Exams: End of December (SQE 1), Every 3 weeks in term 2 for the Plus Programme. There is also coursework every term including Term 3 in the summer. SQE Exams: January (SQE1), August (SQE2), unfortunately there is no summer break.
5. There is a reading week halfway through Term 1, a break to revise for SQE1 between December and the exams in January and a 2-week break in term 2 (around March time).
6. Plus Programme is 4 seats (Listed Companies, Commercial Disputes & Investigations, Private M&A, Debt Finance). They are actually really useful for practice. There is a lot of reading, but the term is considerably easier than the SQE1 term. There is an MCQ summative every 3 weeks, then a 1-hour written exam/seat (4 altogether) the week after the final MCQ summative. There is also a group project, a task on Apply that is compulsory, and a Behaviour Portfolio. The Portfolio includes a development record, 3 evidence sheets, and a reflective essay. It's quite a lot of work, but very doable.
7. Advice:
   1. Revise underlying law before you start as you won't have time in the first term and the SQE is a really difficult exam.
   2. Try to stay 1 week ahead on the reading to give yourself some breathing room if you find a concept difficult.
   3. Do the apply tasks in the first term as it will help you with the coursework later on.
   4. Get the ReviseSQE books as they are considerably better than BPP's materials. You will be fine if you use just BPP's materials, especially for the new subjects, but the ReviseSQE books appear to be both more concise and contain more content.
   5. Do some practice MCQs ahead of SQE1. BPP has some and they give you access to OUP's questions. I highly recommend ReviseSQE and QLTS for additional MCQs as I found these to be of a closer standard to the exam. The SRA also has some which are useful, but much easier than the SQE1.
   6. Can't think of any more now, but will add some if I remember.

Thank you!!!!!

 

[j.s.cox]

Thanks a ton for your detailed response. BPP has not provided any information whatsoever - to the point where the silence is now absurd! I'm considering getting the ReviseSQE books and working through them in July and August before beginning the SQE1 prep at BPP in September. Do you recommend getting all the textbooks that pertain to the SQE1 topics? I'm worried that might be too expensive. Would greatly appreciate any advice on what topics to focus on (will definitely be doing crim, land, and torts).
Thanks in advance!

Sorry for getting back to you so late. I personally think getting all the textbooks are completely worth the money, but if it is too expensive, I especially recommend:

• Property Practice (has a ton of stuff BPP doesn't teach)
• Business Law and Practice (explains things far better than BPP)
• The Legal System and Services of England and Wales (BPP doesn't really teach this and it explains things well)
• Constituional and Administrative law (BPP doesn't really teach this and it explains things well)
• Criminal Practice (laid out much better than BPP materials)

You could also see if anyone is selling any second hand, but if you do this, check that all the law (especially the tax bits) are correct.

If you are just looking at the underlying law before coming to BPP, I would say just pick the topics you have found harder and don't have a good understanding of.

Hope this helps!

 

[prospectiveswitcher]

Hi - question I had which may be answerable here - is there any actual difference between the CCP and the SQE LLM that BPP offer? Is the 'Essentials for Practice' add on in the LLM effectively the same as the 'Plus' programme (seems they are similar in nature if not identical)

 

[born&raised]

Hi!

I'm currently on the CCP at BPP.

1. There are 10 contact hours/week each term (2 hours/workshop, 5 workshops/week).
2. The hours are spread over 3-5 days/week.
3. You are mixed into different groups after the first term and there are a few mixing opportunities, but these are limited.
4. BPP Exams: End of December (SQE 1), Every 3 weeks in term 2 for the Plus Programme. There is also coursework every term including Term 3 in the summer. SQE Exams: January (SQE1), August (SQE2), unfortunately there is no summer break.
5. There is a reading week halfway through Term 1, a break to revise for SQE1 between December and the exams in January and a 2-week break in term 2 (around March time).
6. Plus Programme is 4 seats (Listed Companies, Commercial Disputes & Investigations, Private M&A, Debt Finance). They are actually really useful for practice. There is a lot of reading, but the term is considerably easier than the SQE1 term. There is an MCQ summative every 3 weeks, then a 1-hour written exam/seat (4 altogether) the week after the final MCQ summative. There is also a group project, a task on Apply that is compulsory, and a Behaviour Portfolio. The Portfolio includes a development record, 3 evidence sheets, and a reflective essay. It's quite a lot of work, but very doable.
7. Advice:
   1. Revise underlying law before you start as you won't have time in the first term and the SQE is a really difficult exam.
   2. Try to stay 1 week ahead on the reading to give yourself some breathing room if you find a concept difficult.
   3. Do the apply tasks in the first term as it will help you with the coursework later on.
   4. Get the ReviseSQE books as they are considerably better than BPP's materials. You will be fine if you use just BPP's materials, especially for the new subjects, but the ReviseSQE books appear to be both more concise and contain more content.
   5. Do some practice MCQs ahead of SQE1. BPP has some and they give you access to OUP's questions. I highly recommend ReviseSQE and QLTS for additional MCQs as I found these to be of a closer standard to the exam. The SRA also has some which are useful, but much easier than the SQE1.
   6. Can't think of any more now, but will add some if I remember.

Hi, thank you for this super comprehensive response! I'm starting the CCP in the January intake, and I did the PGDL with BPP as well. I'm sure I'll get some ReviseSQE books for sure, especially the ones you mentioned. Do you think getting ReviseSQE books is worth it for the underlying law topics, or would it suffice to just revise using the BPP material that I've studied during the PGDL?

 

[j.s.cox]

Hi, thank you for this super comprehensive response! I'm starting the CCP in the January intake, and I did the PGDL with BPP as well. I'm sure I'll get some ReviseSQE books for sure, especially the ones you mentioned. Do you think getting ReviseSQE books is worth it for the underlying law topics, or would it suffice to just revise using the BPP material that I've studied during the PGDL?

I depends how comprehensive your notes are and how confident you are with the underlying law. You could definitely pass using the BPP material from the PGDL, but personally I preferred how the Revise SQE books were laid out as it literally went through the topics in the order laid out by the SRA. This meant that I knew I had covered everything. It was also more concise and gave me further opportunities to practice MCQs ahead of the SQE1. It depends on each person, but I know they were essential to my success. Whichever route you choose, definitely be revising all the underlying law beforehand because the CCP is incredibly time-pressured, and the SQE is incredibly tough.

 

[j.s.cox]

Hi - question I had which may be answerable here - is there any actual difference between the CCP and the SQE LLM that BPP offer? Is the 'Essentials for Practice' add on in the LLM effectively the same as the 'Plus' programme (seems they are similar in nature if not identical)

I've just had a look and the essentials for practice looks completely different from the Plus programme. The Plus programme operated like four seats, wheras the BPP website seems to show that the Essentials for Practice gives three different pathways where you explore one seat in more depth. The CCP also has several CCP specific portfolios and groupwork that has to be completed.