‘It tore at my heart’ — Why this student decided to become a lawyer
Northeastern student Fen Saitta helped people at a London legal assistance charity understand their rights and responsibilities.
LONDON — In a waiting room in southeast London, the worry and exhaustion can be visibly seen etched on the faces of those in line.
Those fretting are waiting to receive free legal assistance at the Peckham branch of the charity Citizens Advice, where Northeastern University student Fen Saitta volunteers.
Saitta said it “tore at my heart” to see anxiety-ridden parents come with their children in tow as they sought out advice on matters as varied and complex as housing, immigration and welfare benefits.
“Any situation involving kids, that was always painful for me,” they said. Saitta made it their mission to entertain the children while the parents dealt with stressful matters.
The worst was when the parents were struggling to access disability or other welfare support that Saitta could see the family relied on to live. “The fact that we could help them in that moment meant the world,” the 20-year-old said.
The third-year undergraduate moved from New Jersey to London to pursue a major in English. It was while studying in the capital of the United Kingdom that Saitta realized that they wanted to be a lawyer.
Ursula Smartt, an associate professor of law and criminology and a legal careers counselor, recommended that Saitta gain some real-world experience by working with Citizens Advice, a volunteer-led service.
Smartt has been pointing Northeastern students toward the organization for the past decade for two main reasons. No legal qualification is required — volunteers can start after passing an assessment testing their attention to detail and basic numeracy and comprehension skills — and it counts as part of qualifying work experience for students who want to become solicitors or barristers.
“Many students, such as Fen Saitta, have taken advantage of this volunteering role,” Smartt said, “mostly dedicating at least six weeks of their summer vacation or providing confidential information and advice to members of the public once or twice a week.”
The service aims to empower individuals by helping them understand their rights and responsibilities, and regaining control of their circumstances, Smartt said.
Established in 1939 in response to the outbreak of World War II, the network of Citizens Advice charities helps about 2.5 million people annually in England and Wales, offering legal advice on issues including debt, employment and housing. It is said to reach two-thirds of Britain’s population, with its website receiving 40 million visits per year.
Peckham is a hot spot for gentrification, with its multi-story garages converted into bars and art studios and its streets appearing in the film “Rye Lane,” which is set in the area. It’s population of 112,000 includes a large migrant community.
The last U.K. census in 2021 found that 57% of households in the area had one “deprived dimension” or more, which included its inhabitants being unemployed or in poor health. Close to half of households in the SE15 postcode live in socially rented accommodation, and a fifth of residents are not from the U.K.
For many, Citizens Advice is their first port of call when encountering a problem. It was something Saitta saw firsthand as they dealt with the sheer demand at the Peckham Citizens Advice’s branch during their volunteering stint between April and August.
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Half an hour before opening, there would already be “a line of people” waiting outside the door, Saitta recalled. “Sometimes on a Monday,” they added, “the queue would be from the door to around the corner and down the street a little bit — it was immense, the amount of people that needed to see us and needed help.”
From the moment they arrived, Saitta was tasked with going through the details of clients and coming up with a schedule to ensure everyone was seen that day. At least 30 people or more would have time with advisers during any given day.
A major role of Saitta’s was “managing emotions” and “keeping people calm” if those waiting to speak with an adviser became frustrated. “A lot of people come to us in the worst situations that people can be in,” continued Saitta, “and it’s just about knowing how to manage that.” Saitta found that providing a listening ear and being careful to be sympathetic but not patronising was often enough to lower anxiety levels in the room.
As part of their learning, Saitta sat in on sessions to hear the type of guidance being offered by the legal advisers. Saitta said no classroom can come close to replicating that firsthand experience. It gave them a clear insight into the struggles facing people in Britain and made them confront their own reasons for wanting to become a solicitor.
“I was faced with this ‘put up or shut up’ kind of moment,” they added. “All my life I’ve said I want to help people, that I want to do good in the world. And then I was actually presented with people that needed help, and I was like, ‘OK, I really do want to do this, I want to be there for people, I want to make a difference.’”
With the legal profession and a life in London calling the American student, they have already been accepted onto a U.K. law conversion master’s degree, which they will take up after graduating from Northeastern.
It is not the last the people of Peckham have seen of them, however. Saitta plans to spend next summer volunteering with Citizens Advice, once again supporting some of the most vulnerable in society.
