Rory Pritchard (3rd Year LLB undergraduate) is the first person to receive a new prestigious award – The David Poole Memorial Award – for his excellent negotiation assignment undertaken as part of his second year studies.

The Award, given to the second year student attaining the highest grade in the negotiation module on the law course at Coventry Univeristy, has been generously funded by Oxford Mediation, a panel of experienced mediators who provide mediation and dispute resolution both nationally and internationally.

Oxford Mediation wished to acknowledge the outstanding work undertaken by David Poole in the field of mediation and felt that an award of this nature was fitting and one of which David undoubtedly would have approved. David was also a founding member of Oxford Mediation.

Coventry University Law School was chosen as the honoured recipient of the prize when it transpired that David was a past student of the University (then the Lanchester Polytechnic) having studied Russian here several years ago. Indeed, by way of further coincidence, the former Chair and a mediator with Oxford Mediation, Shaun Jardine, was also a former law graduate of Coventry University.

Shaun was instrumental in arranging for the granting of this prize to Coventry University. Rory was presented with the engraved glass award, together with a cheque for £200, by David Poole’s widow, Carol, accompanied by Shaun and colleague Yashmin Mistry.