Bristol-headquartered national law firm TLT has set itself the ambitious target of having 35% ethnic minority representation in its early career roles within seven years.
The firm said the move was aimed at eliminating barriers to entry into the legal profession for aspiring ethnic minority lawyers and to improve diversity.
The new target, announced during Black History Month, forms part of the firm’s apprenticeship strategy, which seeks to open the legal sector to different backgrounds and offer future talent an alternative pathway to university.
The scheme includes trainees and apprentices with the aim of driving an increase in ethnic minority representation in TLT’s early careers roles from one in five to one in three by October 2030.
The firm, which has more than 150 partners and employs around 1,400 people across its six offices, already offers innovative legal apprenticeships - a legal solicitor apprenticeship aimed at ambitious and motivated employees, school leavers or career changers and a graduate solicitor apprenticeship, aimed at internal applicants with a degree.
Its fresh ambitions are being spearheaded by a number of early careers initiatives, including a recent investment to grow it’s early careers team, ensuring the firm has the internal resource to deliver its plans; and an ongoing commitment to a number of partnerships.
Alongside the design of a bespoke Solicitor Qualification Exam (SQE) preparation programme, launched in partnership with BPP University Law School in 2022, TLT has designed a new virtual work experience programme for school leavers, launching this autumn, to ensure access is widened to a larger demographic and audience.
TLT’s commitment to increasing ethnic minority representation will be supported by further measures throughout the employee lifecycle, focusing on promotion and attrition.
Progress against these targets and comprehensive measures will be shared with the firm’s ethnic diversity network – one of TLT’s core affinity networks – which empowers and supports ethnically diverse staff to educate others on the challenges faced by ethnically diverse individuals, informs policy and approach and enables TLT to grow and maintain a representative and equitable workforce.
The new early career goals will be supported by investment from the firm, including resources, finance and targeted initiatives – all regarded as key to delivery.
These will include new advisory roles and additional senior and strategic roles in the firm and a new outreach programme aimed at schools and relevant partnerships.
TLT partner and sponsor of the firm’s ethnic diversity network Kanika Kitchlu-Connolly, pictured,said: “I am really pleased to see the firm take this initial step towards increasing diversity throughout our business and committing to ensuring we have the resource to get us there.”
TLT managing partner John Wood added: “We have a responsibility as an organisation to look at how we can open up the legal sector and give people from different backgrounds the opportunity to consider a career in law.
“We are committed to improving diversity at TLT by investing in our early careers, doubling our efforts to raise awareness amongst young people of the career opportunities in law and to continue to create an inclusive working environment. There is still a long way to go, however I am confident that we are one step ahead and are paving the way to diversifying the legal sector.”
TLT was named Law Firm of the Year at last month’s Legal Business Awards 2023 – the third year in a row it had topped the main category in a major legal sector awards scheme.
