Jarred Consulting

The legacy of legal sector apprenticeships

There has been a significant rise in the number of employers in the legal sector adopting apprenticeship programmes. Jarred Consulting founder Kerry Jarred spoke to Commercial Director at legal training provider BPP Clare Grant about what she’s learned from working at the rock face over the past few years. Is there an equivalence between legal sector apprenticeships and the traditional university SQE route? What are the advantages and disadvantages for employers and students?

Gaining traction

In the last few years, a change has been taking place in the way we inject new talent into the legal sector. ‘Legal sector apprenticeships have been around for about nine or ten years now.’ Clare says. ‘They started relatively slowly but they’ve increased in pace with a lot of bigger players coming on board’. So what’s behind this?

The advantages for employers

More innovative and transparent government-led and private awareness programmes have increased awareness but alongside this, companies have been seeing the benefits of the apprenticeship. There is greater scope for recruiting internally instead of externally. Reducing costs but also plugging skills gaps, this approach is a plus when thinking of strategic planning, legacy and career frameworks. Encouraging lateral movement allows the employer to key into the employee’s existing and natural knowledge of the company, the clients and the sector. Training graduates fresh out of university is comparatively expensive and time-consuming. Having a wider social impact, the apprenticeship pathway lends itself to greater DEI. ‘Organisations have much more structured DEI programmes. They are engaging with learners that they would not have engaged with in the past where they may have only taken on graduates.’ Clare says. It’s becoming the course of choice for many employers because they can recruit talent earlier, straight out of school with greater scope for developing their workforce in-house. Growth is reliant on attracting, engaging and retaining talent. The legal apprenticeship route seems to naturally cover those bases.

The advantages and disadvantages for students

For those eager to get into law, the apprenticeship route opens up opportunities that may not have been available before. Here are some of the plus points.

• Young people can enter the workforce at a younger age as school leavers.
• They’re earning from day one.
• There are no university fees to pay which has huge implications for their families and student debt.
• Until they’re ready to leave, young people can stay at home where they’ll receive the financial and emotional support they need to excel – without costly university accommodation to pay for.
• Learning is embedded in practical hands-on work with the clients. This is an advantage when it comes to the SQE and SMEs.
• There is more hands-on supervision. ‘All learners have to have a line manager to make sure they’re progressing,’ Clare explains. ‘There is less of this in a university programme so you need to ask how good you are at self-study’

Clare gives a word of warning on the challenges too.

• Being in the workforce earlier means that young people will need to have to have the skills they need to be customer-facing. Are they ready?
• The apprenticeship scheme should allow students 20% off the job as study time but some employers may expect them to work five days a week. So there is a need to be able to manage workload in a stressful environment. It may be harder to keep up with studies.

Training for the future

The dual pathway allows firms to secure their talent earlier, mould them and build loyalty. It’s not about attracting talent, it’s about training people and then retaining them afterwards. ‘In my experience, there’s less movement after qualification with an apprentice. You really get them to understand the firm.’ Clare says.

And is one route better regarded than the other?

Absolutely not. ‘People need to understand that these programmes are 100% equivalent. Apprenticeship is no longer a dirty word.’ Clare says. For more on legal sector apprenticeships, whether this route is right for you and how to research your next steps, tune in to the ReImagine Law podcast co-hosted by Kerry Jarred. And talk to us if skills gaps and recruitment are slowing down your company’s progress. We’re here to help. Listen to the podcast on: Spotify Apple podcasts We would love to hear from you! Get in touch!