Burges Salmon is proud to be hosting eight students from local Bristol schools for a work experience scheme through their collaboration with Bristol Future Talent Partnership (BFTP).
BFTP is a collection of organisations and educational providers in the city of Bristol who have joined together with the objective of raising aspirations and providing access to work experience for BAME students in the local area and to end the long-standing multiple inequalities and underrepresentation faced by people from black and minority ethnic backgrounds, particularly in education and employment.
In line with the firm’s responsible business and community engagement aims, as well as its commitment to workplace diversity and inclusion, Burges Salmon is providing an opportunity for the students to join the firm for a full week of activity with the aim of developing a richly rewarding experience for both parties.
Students are given a full introduction to the firm including routes into legal careers as well as insights from each of the main business service departments covering People, Finance, Operations and Marketing. Students have been set a legal task as well as tasks relevant to each business service department. Throughout the week the students have been working on a climate-related project as an opportunity to hone and demonstrate collaboration, communication, critical analysis and time-management skills.
Many students are unaware of the variety of jobs available in the legal sector and its supporting roles. The scheme provides a positive way of introducing students to jobs that might initially be off radar.
A mutually beneficial initiative, the programme allows Burges Salmon the opportunity to be a force for good, contributing to a strong and thriving local community and supporting inclusivity by helping to drive wider and equal access to the legal sector, as well as reaping the benefits of attracting the best talent.
Kirsty Green-Mann, Head of Corporate Responsibility at Burges Salmon, comments: “This is a great of example of what can be done when there is a collective will and a little challenge. It’s been fantastic to engage with these young people who are prepared to give up their half-term to invest in their futures and to have colleagues who have put in the effort to make this happen at relatively short notice. We look forward to growing the number of participants in years to come as the Bristol Future Talent Partnership becomes really established.”