Work Experience Programme

About the Programme:

We are committed to equality, diversity, inclusion, and social mobility and believe that a person’s access to job opportunities should not be determined by their background, but rather by the skill and talents they possess.

Work experience is often the first step towards a career in law, giving students the opportunity to experience life as a lawyer in an office environment.

We are proud to partner with PRIME, the Sutton Trust and Reach Out 2 Kids to offer annual work experience for year 12 students.

PRIME is an alliance of law firms across the UK committed to improving access to the legal profession through work experience. PRIME’s mission is to provide fair access to work experience for young people who have the least opportunity available to them.

The Sutton Trust shares the aims of PRIME. They have relationships with schools across London and recruit students on our behalf.

Reach Out 2 Kids also have relationships with schools across London and recruit students on our behalf as well. They specifically provide support to young people from BAME and lower income backgrounds.

The Sutton Trust have the following selection criteria and continue to identify those with least opportunity:

Students applying to Pathways to Law must meet the following criteria:

• Attend, and have always attended, a state-funded, non fee-paying school/college
• Be in Year 12 at the start of the Programme

You will qualify for this Programme if you:

Have achieved 5 A* – B grades at GCSE (with a minimum of 2 A* or A grades), including grades 9 – 6 in Mathematics and English

You should also fulfil one of the following criteria below:

• Be the first generation in their family to attend university, or
• Have been in receipt of Free School Meals whilst at Secondary School, or
• Have attended schools with a lower than average progression to Higher Education, or a higher than average proportion of students who qualify for Free School Meals, or
• Have parent(s)/guardian(s) who qualify for means-tested benefits, or
• Have been looked after or in care

The experience

Our one-week work experience takes place in April. We offer practical work experience and a blend of workshops to help prepare students with the skills needed to succeed in a career in law.

We will cover your travel expenses to and from the office as well as lunch and refreshments throughout the day.

Work experience takes place at our London office: Elm Yard, 10-16 Elm Street, London, WC1X 0BJ

More information about our office location can be found here.

How to apply

We deliver our PRIME work experience placement week in partnership with the Sutton Trust Pathways to Law Programme. The placements are accessible to participants of the Pathways to Law Programme, who enrolled on the Programme at the start of Year 12. More information about the Sutton Trust Pathways to Law Programme and how to apply can be found here.