Expelled schoolgirl to law student at 56

In 1985, at the age of 15, I was expelled from school.

At that point, nobody would have predicted that decades later I would be studying for a law degree with The Open University, certainly not me. Like many people who leave education early, life took over. Work, family and caring responsibilities, health challenges, and simply getting through each day became the priority. Education was something I assumed belonged to another chapter of my life.

What I didn't realise was that learning would eventually become one of the most important tools I had.

I have just finished my second year of a Diploma in Law, and I am looking forward to starting my third and final year next month, all while being a full-time carer for a disabled family member. Balancing study with caring responsibilities is not always easy. There are assignments, deadlines and the day-to-day realities that come with caring for someone who depends on you.

My decision to study law did not come from wanting to work in the legal profession. It came from lived experience. I started studying law because I needed to understand it. Over many years I have found myself navigating complex processes involving the state, courts, local authorities, healthcare providers and others. Following my involvement in raising awareness of childhood strokes in 2010, I also became involved in a prolonged social media dispute.

The experience was challenging, but it forced me to learn. I became increasingly interested in how decisions are made, how evidence is assessed, what legal protections exist, and how ordinary people can challenge public bodies when they believe something has gone wrong.

As a full-time carer, those questions became even more important. I found myself dealing with disability services, healthcare providers, education, housing, benefits and legal processes. I wanted to understand the systems affecting our lives.

Alongside my studies, I am currently a litigant in person navigating complex legal proceedings, including applications in the family courts and matters relating to property. Most recently, I successfully navigated the Land Registry process relating to the transfer of my home, including compliance with a historic court order from 2015 and completing a TR1 transfer that remained unresolved for more than a decade. Throughout these matters, I have represented myself, researched relevant law and procedure, prepared court documents, and engaged directly with public bodies and legal processes.

Studying law is far more than an academic qualification to me. What began as a desire to better advocate for a family member has grown into a genuine passion for learning. For much of my life, I accepted decisions because I did not know how to challenge them. Studying law has given me the knowledge and confidence to question outcomes and make sure our voices are heard.

The Open University gave me an opportunity I never thought I would have. It allowed me to study around my existing responsibilities and prove to myself that my experiences had value. Returning to education in my fifties was intimidating. I questioned whether I was capable, whether I was too old, and whether I would fit in.

I discovered that none of those fears mattered.

What mattered was taking the first step.

In May 2025, I took another step completely outside my comfort zone. Health problems had left me barely leaving the house or seeing other people. I decided to volunteer at a local community project in Wrexham, initially for a few hours once a month simply to get myself interacting with people again. I gradually increased this to weekly volunteering.

That experience changed my trajectory. It helped rebuild my confidence, gave me a sense of purpose and made me realise that the knowledge and experience I had accumulated could be useful to other people.

It also planted the seed for a voluntary, practical support service aimed at helping vulnerable people navigate systems that can otherwise feel overwhelming and inaccessible. I cannot provide legal advice, but I can volunteer my time, knowledge and lived experience to help people understand processes, organise information and find their way through them.

My experiences of the courts, public bodies, benefits and caring for a disabled family member have taught me things that cannot be learned from a textbook or module alone. I increasingly feel that I have accumulated too much knowledge and experience not to use it to help somebody else, particularly people who cannot afford practical support.

As my studies continue, I hope to use both my academic knowledge and lived experience to help others feel less intimidated, more informed and better equipped to navigate challenges themselves. Even before my third year begins, I am already thinking about what comes next. Completing the degree will not be an ending but a stepping stone, and I am already looking at how to turn that support service into my next project.

Looking back, the 15-year-old girl who left school in 1985 would never have imagined she would one day be writing legal assignments, analysing case law, and working towards a law degree. Yet here I am.

My journey has not been straightforward, but perhaps that is exactly why it matters.

If sharing my story encourages even one person to believe they are not too old, too busy, or too far behind to return to education, then every anxiety-ridden study session has been worth it.

Eileen Pritchard

I am a huge animal lover and have four dogs and four cats, mostly rescues. I am also a lifelong lover of horses, having lost my own horse after 25 years together. I have been rebuilding my fitness after decades away from it and currently feel fitter than I have in 30 years. I love being outdoors and walking everywhere from forests to beaches, talking to people about almost anything, and I have a particular love of cups of tea and history. I am currently relocating after 34 years in the same house to a Victorian townhouse on the beach. Oh, also my pride and joy is ‘Edith’ my convertible VW Beetle