Whilst our training system places strong emphasis on early responsibility, it also takes very seriously the need for you to have a thorough grounding in the main subject areas and to develop skills. We are very careful to monitor the progress of all trainees and to ensure that each trainee is given the support and training they individually need. We do this in a variety of ways.

• On-the-job training - Learning by actually doing the work is the best form of training and we expect our trainees to take their development seriously and seek out feedback at the end of each job from all senior associates and partners they have worked with in order to round off the learning experience. 
  
• Mentoring - On joining the Firm, you are allocated a partner mentor and trainee buddy who will provide you with whatever support you need whilst you settle into the office.
  
• Seminars and Courses – You will attend six seminars each month. These are delivered by senior lawyers from the different practices. You must also complete the Professional Skills Course.
  
• Monitoring - This is done by way of:

• Weekly Workload Reports - You will submit a weekly workload report that tells us exactly which matters you are working on. We ask each trainee to tell us how much capacity they have to take on new work in the forthcoming week and, ideally, from which practice they would like that new work to come. In this way, we assist in directing the different types of work to the people who want it.
• Checklists - The checklists prove a useful tool when trying to determine whether a trainee has sufficient experience in any given practice. You will meet with our Trainee Solicitor Development Manager quarterly to review your checklists. This review gives you an opportunity to talk about your progress and the type of work you want to try next. At the end of the training contract, the relevant Practice Training Partner will review and, if you have done sufficient work in that practice, sign off your checklist as part of our admissions procedure.
• Appraisals - We conduct formal appraisals every six months during the training contract. Our appraisal process is competency-based and focuses on the Training Contract Skills Standards identified by the Solicitors Regulation Authority as well as personal effectiveness. We have an open appraisal process for trainees, meaning that you are able to self evaluate and see exactly what's been written about you.
• Group Lunches - Once a month, the Partner-in-Charge of Training and the Trainee Solicitor Development Manager host a lunch with each trainee year group. We use these lunches as an opportunity to catch up with one another, but also to review administrative arrangements, bring in guest speakers, or pass on any information trainees need.