My Journey to Law School

Emily Farruku

Hi! I'm Emily, 21, and I was diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy at birth. Growing up being different in a culture and society that seems to deem 'disability as a disadvantage' was hard. Throughout every stage of my academic career/life I was constantly told to 'be realistic', to 'stop dreaming big'. Instead of discouraging me, it lit a fire underneath me.... a fire to never give up, no matter how long it took me to make my dreams come true. After taking a year out of primary school to undergo and recover from my surgeries - I passed all my SATs exams despite being told I wouldn't. The same happened for my GCSEs... and you guessed it… I did exceptionally well in A-levels too (I actually ended up getting one of the highest results in the year group and secured my place to study Law at City University).

The start of my journey at City felt messy, hard, and confusing. But it also brought me so much independence, growth and personal development. This chapter feels very much about building the version of me ‘Little Emily’ always needed.

My passion for creating a fair and just world, that led me to read Law, came from a lifetime of constant no’s. Unfortunately, our world isn’t built for people like me - someone who challenges what inclusivity even means or what it looks like. I spent my school life being told how to move my own body and ‘use my wheelchair’ or risk getting in trouble. To doubt and water down my dreams of becoming a lawyer, because I would simply ‘never make it’. That was their narrative. Not mine. I’ve proved it. Now, my purpose is to spread the love, justice and belief in others that I never had.

I have also worked with Children in Need as part of their 2024 Challenge Squad, where I told my Cerebral Palsy story (as part of fundraising for Cpotential - who cater for children and young people with movement disorders) and completed a walking challenge to raise money for Children in Need and awareness for the charities they support. Cpotential have been a massive part of the physical abilities I now have as well as my recovery from major surgeries. I wish I could show ‘little me’ just how far she'd come, and I hope to use my fundraising skills (which I have learned come from voicing the vulnerability, authenticity and passion of real-life experiences) and legal skills to help grow ALSA UK into a larger community. Finally, to those who may be reading and thinking they aren't capable of something... you are more than capable. I'm living proof.