For this blog our Director, Amy Watson, sat down with Solicitor Apprentice Ellie Phillips to find out about her personal experience of being a Legal Apprentice at BHP Law. In this interview, Ellie discusses why she set on undertaking a Legal Apprenticeship. What she has achieved so far and why more awareness of Legal Apprenticeships is needed.
What did you do before the apprenticeship?
I started the apprenticeship following the completion of my A Levels. A lot of apprentices do start as school leavers, but you don’t have to. The apprenticeship is available to all age-groups. It could be really useful for people changing careers or looking to qualify as a solicitor having already worked in the profession in other roles. Essentially, if you don’t have a law degree already, the apprenticeship is an option. If you do hold a law degree, a graduate solicitor apprenticeship would be your alternative.
What age did you know you wanted a career in Law?
A career in law has always interested me from an early age. As I was considering what I would do after my A Levels, I was quite confident that my skill set would be suited to a career in law. From there, I started to research the profession and routes into it. I sought work experience and began volunteering with my local Citizens Advice bureau (CAB) in my spare time during Sixth Form. At CAB I progressed to a telephone advisor role, and I remember being one of the youngest volunteers in this role. 17 at the time. I really found reward in the opportunity to assist the community with a wide variety of issues from that young age. Importantly, it confirmed to me that a career in law was right for me.
Did you consider university full-time?
I knew that if I didn’t secure an apprenticeship, I would ultimately have to go to university to pursue my goal of qualifying as a solicitor. That being said, university was very much my ‘back up’ option. Rather than the other way around, which can be a common misconception.
My plan essentially was that I would apply to apprenticeships and aim to secure an apprenticeship within the first application cycle. If I was unsuccessful, I was prepared to wait and reapply the following year. At the time, I remember being heavily encouraged to apply to university. At Sixth Form the focus was very much upon university applications. I don’t recall being encouraged at all (never mind quite as heavily) to consider degree apprenticeships. Despite this, I knew that the apprenticeship was the route that I wanted to pursue. Furthermore, that it was the route that would help me get that ‘head-start’ on my career, which would, in turn, assist in fulfilling my long-term career ambitions.
How did you end up securing the apprenticeship role with BHP Law?
I initially applied to the North East Solicitor Apprenticeship (NESA) Scheme, which we have discussed previously. NESA follow a group recruitment process, and I think when I applied in 2020 there were around eight firms recruiting. As I mention applying in 2020, you might have suspected that things did not run quite as smoothly as they would usually. Unfortunately you would be right!
NESA Solicitor Apprenticeship Application Process
I progressed through the application process, and attended a group assessment centre in February 2020. I was successful at the group assessment with six firms and was invited to attend the final stage of selection. This entailed a final interview and work placement with each of the six. Unfortunately, the last stage was set to go ahead from March onwards, which, as you can imagine wasn’t possible due to the pandemic and it was initially postponed. As the first lockdown continued, it became less and less likely that it would be possible for the selection process to continue due to wonderful implications of the pandemic. As a result, the NESA recruitment process was ultimately withdrawn for the 2020 application cycle.
At this point, despite understanding the circumstances in which NESA could not go ahead as it usually would for that year – I couldn’t help but feel the disappointment. That the biggest, most important opportunity I had ever had at that time, had been taken out of my reach for reasons beyond my control. I had essentially gone from being in a great position and having a real chance of receiving apprenticeship offers. To, ultimately, not really having a chance at all.
Next Steps
I decided at this point, that I wasn’t quite ready to accept this outcome just yet. That ‘not really having a chance’ is not the same as not having any chance at all, and that that was good enough for me! The apprenticeship was something I was very, very set on. There was no doubt in my mind that it was the right route for me. Equally, having spent almost six months in what felt like a stationary position (with my A-levels cancelled, and being in limbo within the application cycle), I wanted to get started as soon as possible. My prospects of securing the apprenticeship were something that had helped me navigate the uncertainty that the first lockdown brought. Fundamentally, in that time I had become more determined than ever to achieve what I had set out to.
Securing the Apprenticeship
I initially checked that Northumbria University were still offering the apprenticeship programme with a 2020 start. Luckily they were. So, then I contacted each firm that I had reached the final stage of selection with directly. I essentially explained the position, and my aim of securing an apprenticeship despite the circumstance. I enquired as to whether there was any scope to continue with the apprenticeship. Or if any alternative opportunities might be available. It was in response to my email, that BHP Law invited me to meet with their managing partner. Following this, they excitingly offered me the apprenticeship.
No one at the time knew what Covid was going to mean for businesses, law firms and apprenticeships in general. I’m not sure exactly what made BHP Law take that chance. Particularly given that Jack and I (who also approached BHP Law following the recruitment process with NESA) were the first Solicitor Apprentices that they recruited. However, I do think that our perseverance and persistence demonstrated our commitment to pursue the apprenticeship route made the difference. That this assisted in our ability to secure an apprenticeship where the odds were very much against us.
What was it that you think made BHP Law say yes? When you went back to them and essentially said that I’m not taking no as an answer.
I can’t say for certain, but I think that the actions which we took really demonstrated just how driven we were. Perhaps that in showing this drive through action, rather than just, for example, holding yourself as having these kinds of traits in a written application. It had much more conviction, and that this was ultimately enough to take that chance on us.
Has BHP Law subsequently continued with the apprenticeship?
Yes. We currently have a total of 5 Solicitor Apprentices. This year we are involved in the NESA recruitment application cycle.
So, how do you manage to juggle your external work from university and your apprenticeship day-to-day work?
It’s certainly a challenge. However, the key to being able to juggle both for me comes with organisation and communication. Being organised both in the workplace and with your studies is really important. It is just as important to communicate with your workplace (and current team/supervisor) as to your workload in each area. So, that the balance remains manageable. Exam periods are often where it becomes most challenging. However, again through communication and organisation the challenge remains manageable. We do receive exam leave allocated prior to our exams, which really helps.
I do think that protecting your 20% study time is also important. It can be difficult where you want to progress as much as possible at work. This can make it tempting at times to give up your study day in order to do so. But the reality is that you just can’t afford to do that consistently. As the study day really is essential for succeeding academically. The apprenticeship relies on successful in both areas.
Does a six-year apprenticeship feel a long time?
For me, I don’t feel that it does. I’m now past the halfway point, and it has really flown by. It’s strange because although development / progression wise I feel worlds away from when I started. It feels like the time has passed really quickly. I suppose that’s the kind of accelerated progression that you can expect when you are, or when you recruit a Solicitor Apprentice!
Six years is around the minimum length of time that it takes to qualify through the traditional route anyway. That of course is reliant upon securing a training contract in the first application cycle, which is not always the case.
Have you got an idea at this stage at what area you are interested in and what you want to qualify into?
The honest answer is not yet! My first seat was in Court of Protection (Health and Welfare). My second was Family (public law) and my current seat is in Civil Dispute Resolution. I have enjoyed each and have found each area has assisted me in developing different skills and competencies. As I still have three years to go, I’m remaining open minded and taking everything in along the way.
What I can say now, is that I think my passion probably lies with people-focused areas of law, rather than more transactional areas. For me, the more personal side of law is what I enjoy. As it brings that element of making a difference and seeing the real value in the work that you do.
Speaking to you is obviously fantastic in terms of awareness. We’re going to talk about this with our clients and get them to look at offering this as part of their recruitment. How do you plan to raise more awareness? What are you doing to champion the apprenticeship route?
I volunteer with the Apprenticeship Ambassador Network (AAN). This is a national network split up into regional divisions. So, I work directly with the North-East network predominantly. The AAN have various initiatives, but one aim is to increase apprenticeship awareness and assist potential apprentices in making an informed decision in their career pursuits. Things like careers fairs, presentations and mock interview / CV workshops are ways in which the AAN look to achieve this. Something which the AAN do which I think is really important particularly for younger people, is that they also attend events that include parents. There has been stigma surrounding apprenticeships for quite some time. I think as with most things, this can come from lack of education and information available. So, greater the reach of these kinds of initiatives, the better.
Work Experience Placement
This year, I proposed the idea of a year 12/13 work experience programme to BHP Law. Subsequently, we designed and delivered a programme which was a real success over the summer. We were able to welcome two successful candidates to our Darlington Office. They experienced a mixture of hands-on experience and workshops. Some of which were focused upon pathways into law, including the apprenticeship route. This is something that is really important to me, as I myself had struggled to obtain work experience at that age due to lack of connections within the profession. Consequently, I wanted to do something that can begin to change that narrative of ‘it’s not what you know, it’s who you know’ at a local level. So, the programme was very much tailored to that, all the way down to the application which included a cover letter which gave all candidates the same opportunity. Rather than it being based upon personal connections, or past work experience. I am grateful to have been supported to implement something at BHP Law that I am passionate about. I am looking forward to continuing with and developing this programme further.
Additionally, I do think there is some work to be done in the North-East in terms of creating more legal apprenticeship opportunities. So that aspiring legal apprentices don’t have to move out of the area if they don’t want to. I would love to see more North-East based firms begin to recruit Solicitor Apprentices, and if there is anything I can do to assist with that I will be more than willing. Even if it is comes down to carrying on the conversation on Solicitor Apprenticeships in the North-East.
What has BHP Law done that can set an example to other firms running or considering running the apprenticeship?
I think a real key thing that BHP Law have done, is that they’ve been willing to listen and adapt alongside their apprentices. A small example of this, is with our exam leave, we’ve been able to have open conversations about what we need in order to achieve success academically – which has included increasing our exam leave as we have progressed through our degree.
So, what’s next for you? How long do you spend in each team now?
I’ll be with the Dispute Resolution team until next September. During this time I will be completing my final year of my law degree. Thereafter I’ll move onto the SQE and the final two years of the apprenticeship!
I will continue to champion apprenticeships throughout this and continue in my endeavours to assist young people looking to access the profession. Including by continuing with the Year 12/13 Work experience programme at BHP Law. My experience has shown me that you don’t have to wait until later in your career to try and make a difference. You can, and should, be trying to do so now, which is something which, I hope, will play a key part in ‘what’s next’ for me.