Inspiring teenage potential at Eversheds
The top 10 law firm Eversheds has piloted a groundbreaking scheme encouraging teenagers from disadvantaged backgrounds to pursue a career in the legal profession. The UK-based firm has been working with government-appointed Widening Participation Officers (WPOs) based at UK universities tasked with increasing the number of undergraduates from diverse backgrounds. WPOs work with teenagers attending nearby schools and youth groups who come from disadvantaged backgrounds – defined as being where neither parent or carer has been to university and are unlikely to have held a professional career. Caroline Wilson, Eversheds’ director of diversity, said the firm had offered teenagers already taking part in WPO programmes three-day work placements to introduce them to the legal profession. Wilson said, “We are trying to provide these young people with the inspiration and aspiration to ensure they realise that this [a legal career] is within their grasp. They will have to work hard at it, but it is within their grasp… it’s absolutely astounding to see how far they can progress in three days. We ask them to do a presentation on the last day and the quality is as good, if not better than from vacation placement students.” Wilson said trainees at top firms will have predominantly gone to grammar or private school and while they can add gap years and placements to CVs, teenagers from deprived backgrounds will have developed other skills by virtue of overcoming more obstacles to succeed and having “experienced life from a range of different perspectives”. She said partners at Eversheds had described the pilot as “the best diversity initiative they have seen in the last 12 months” and were now considering expanding the scheme. The Law Society’s Diversity Access Scheme received 184 applications for 10 trainee places this year.
