Nathalie Podder

Nathalie Podder is a Paralegal within our Education & Children’s Rights team. She is based in our London office.

Professional Biography

Nathalie graduated from Imperial College London in 2021 with a BSc (Hons) in Physics (2:2) before going on to complete an MSc in Security and Resilience: Science and Technology at the same university, graduating with Distinction in 2025. She was admitted as a Paralegal on 10 November 2025 and is currently completing an MA Law (Conversion) at The University of Law, where she is predicted to achieve a Distinction. She is expected to graduate in 2026.

Before beginning her formal legal training, Nathalie served as Deputy President (Welfare) at Imperial College Union, where she was an elected sabbatical officer representing more than 20,000 students. In this role, she worked across the higher education policy landscape on issues such as sexual misconduct procedures, student disciplinary systems, and the cost-of-living crisis. Nathalie was also the Union’s lead representative for equality, diversity, and inclusion, working closely with Imperial to develop and monitor its statutory Access and Participation Plan, a regulatory requirement for all English universities to promote fair access for underrepresented students.

Through this work, Nathalie gained first-hand insight into the barriers faced by students with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) in higher education. This experience motivated her to pursue a legal career focused on education and children’s rights, where she could support children, young people, and families on an individual basis.

Nathalie has developed strong expertise in education and public law, particularly in matters relating to Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs) and judicial review. She regularly drafts letters before action, formal legal letters sent to local authorities before judicial review proceedings begin, and advises parents on appeals relating to EHCPs. These appeals typically involve issues such as the content of an EHCP, school placements, or the failure of a local authority to meet its legal duties to a child with special educational needs.

She currently volunteers at SOS! Special Educational Needs, where she mentors volunteers in the Pre-Action Protocol Pro Bono team, helping families take the first steps towards challenging unlawful decisions by local authorities. Nathalie is also an advisor at the Waterloo Advice Centre, where she provides guidance to members of the public on education and welfare issues.

Through her work, Nathalie has successfully secured concessions from several local authorities following pre-action correspondence for judicial review. Her key cases have involved failures by local authorities to deliver the special educational provision specified in section F of an EHCP, delays in phase transfers between school stages, failures to complete annual reviews, and failures to transfer EHCPs when families move between local authorities.

Nathalie’s broader legal experience spans several areas of law through her mini-pupillages and legal placements, including:

• Planning and Environmental Law at Landmark Chambers
• Asylum and Immigration Law at Maxim Chambers
• Family Law at 36 Group
• Criminal Law at 5 Paper Buildings
• Property, Education, and Administrative Law in the Legal Department at Imperial College London

During her time marshalling for Recorder and Deputy District Judge Hamish Common at Isleworth Crown Court and the Royal Courts of Justice, Nathalie assisted in the drafting of judgments for both civil and criminal hearings, giving her valuable insight into judicial reasoning and court procedure.

In her current role at Simpson Millar, Nathalie supports the solicitors in the Education and Children’s Rights team with a wide range of tasks. She handles new client enquiries, drafts attendance notes, and prepares letters before action for judicial review. Nathalie also conducts in-depth legal research and maintains her awareness of the latest developments in education law and judicial review. In the background, she supports the team by processing data and generating reports on enquiries relating to education and children’s rights.