New portal to connect aspiring solicitors with employers able to offer qualifying work experience
Research shows over 90% of aspiring solicitors do not know how they will obtain the work experience they need to qualify
LawQWE, a careers portal that aims to bring a wider pool of employers together with individuals looking for the qualifying work experience (QWE) they need to become solicitors, has gone live with initial backers ranging from top 100 law firms, national firms and alternative business structures through to charities and in-house legal departments.
The launch comes as new research shows that over 90% of aspiring solicitors do not know how they are going to obtain the QWE they need to qualify.
The goal of LawQWE is to unleash the full potential of the new Solicitors Qualifying Exam (SQE) by helping to unlock a wider range of opportunities across the country for candidates who struggle to access traditional training contract-type arrangements – such as those from low-income households, career switchers or later-life trainees, and by expanding awareness of the rich variety of career paths open to solicitors.
Among those to get involved with the development of the site so far are Macfarlanes, Sintons, Scott-Moncrieff & Associates, Sherrards, Virtuoso, Law by Design, Cambridge University Press, Needle & Partners and Citizens Advice (Bath and North-East Somerset).
LawQWE is the brainchild of legal consultancy Hook Tangaza, whose in-depth experience of the legal education market comes from running the Central Applications Board, a not-for-profit company which provides a portal for over 13,000 students a year to access postgraduate university courses for aspiring solicitors and barristers.
The Solicitors Regulation Authority’s (SRA) overhaul of the route to qualifying as a solicitor – with the SQE and two years of QWE at its heart – has the explicit goal of creating new and diverse pathways to qualification.
Employers now have new freedom to offer work experience that will help candidates to qualify, without needing to commit to offering a highly regulated two-year training contract. They can train their entry level legal talent in the work they need them for, without needing to worry about whether they are covering specific areas of law.
Aspiring solicitors have the flexibility to obtain the experience they need in any setting where they are undertaking legal activities and can get a solicitor to sign this off as QWE. However, to date few employers have realised the possibility that this new system offers and have shifted their approach to recruiting trainees, apprentices, and paralegals.
LawQWE research suggests that the laudable diversity goal of the SQE will not be met without better access to training opportunities. In a recent survey conducted by LawQWE through the Central Applications Board, over 90% of respondents indicated that they did not know how they were going to obtain the QWE they need to qualify. Too few candidates are aware of the wide variety of opportunities for training out there in the legal profession and the different career paths that are open to them.
LawQWE has been designed to meet the needs of both candidates and employers. It aims to become the go-to marketplace for employment and work experience opportunities that will support the development of the competencies demanded by the SRA of new solicitors.
Aspiring solicitors can not only find training opportunities, they can also access tools to promote self-reflection, resilience and career planning. In addition, low cost courses to support skills development, mentoring and a QWE recording tool are all being developed by the portal, so that aspiring solicitors who are building their own portfolio of work experience, can gain the kind of support that they would enjoy if they had a two-year training contract with a single employer.
For employers, LawQWE will provide access to a growing pool of relevant candidates at different stages of their qualification journey, through whom employers can search, supplemented with tools to help organisations new to the entry-level careers market – including in-house teams – with selection and onboarding.
LawQWE and Hook Tangaza co-founder Alison Hook says: “The SQE has opened up a lot of opportunities for both aspiring solicitors and employers but it is early days and there is still a lot of uncertainty about how things will evolve. Our ambition is to demystify the new training regime and create a marketplace which supports a profession of more diverse individuals in a wider range of careers.”
Michael Lewis, partner and head of real estate litigation at Sherrards, says: “Sherrards is delighted to have been involved with the early stages of LawQWE. It is a great concept for firms and candidates. I look forward to working with them in developing our training.”
Ends
Contacts
Alison Hook, Director, LawQWE alison.hook@hooktangaza.com 020 3478 1157
Kerry Jack, Black Letter Communications kerry.jack@blacklettercommunications.co.uk 020 3578 1208
Research methodology
An online survey using Survey Monkey was conducted via the Central Applications Board between 16 January – 24 March 2023. Of 192 respondents, over 90% of respondents said that they did not know how they were going to obtain the QWE they need to qualify as a solicitor.
Notes to editors
LawQWE is a specialist careers portal for the legal sector connecting employers with diverse talent at different stages of qualification. It is not just a legal recruitment job site. LawQWE promotes a more holistic way for aspiring solicitors to think about their legal career and build their required work experience when and how they want.
It was developed by Hook Tangaza, a consultancy delivering research and advisory services to the legal sector on regulation, professional education and training, governance and strategic growth.
