On 26 July, Brighton-based students from BHASVIC Sixth Form and Varndean Collage spent a day at Southern Water’s Worthing office as part of the Social Mobility Business Partnership (SMBP) Work Insight & Skills Programme.
Sixteen 17-year-olds were hosted at the water company’s Head Office by legal teams from Sussex-based solicitors Mayo Wynne Baxter (MWB) and Southern Water, where they took part in two practical sessions. The first led by MWB had a focus on private sector law, with the second led by Southern Water looking at what it’s like working with an in-house legal function.
One of 170 organisation supporting the programme around the UK, Southern Water was first invited to take part by one of its legal partner MWB in 2015 as part of the Brighton Cluster, and has participated each year since, hosting the day in person and remotely during lockdown.
During the Southern Water session, the students worked on a scenario based on a real-life case involving Southern Water, considering the many aspects of the case - finishing with the students making ‘case recommendations’ to a mock board of directors.
Kelly Young, Southern Water’s Litigation & Claims Manager, said: “Fourteen legal team members took part in the session, which we look forward to being part of each year. It’s our chance to share both our passion for law and our own varied career path stories; with what could be the future generation of lawyers and legal workers.
“This scheme is so important as it helps to highlight law as a career to young people who may not have previously considered the law as a possible option.”
One student from BHASVIC said: “I really enjoyed learning about different areas of law and how to apply them using real case scenarios. My favourite part of the day was working in groups and chatting with Southern Water employees about their experiences and roles in the legal team.”
Another added: “Speaking to people who actually work in law was a great opportunity, especially hearing that many started with work placements rather than attending university. It was really interesting finding out how to identify evidence and having the opportunity to speak in a real boardroom.”
Background Info:
A volunteer-led charity, SMBP is a collaboration of 170 commercial organisations, professional services firms and professional sports teams working in towns and cities across the U.K. All are committed to supporting students from low-income backgrounds in their pursuit of a career in business. Since 2014, SMBP has grown from offering opportunities to 20 students in London, to over 470 student places across the UK in 2021.
The Social Mobility Business Partnership was developed to give students from low-income backgrounds opportunities to get an insight into careers in business areas such as finance and law that they may not have ordinarily considered.
Students benefit from visiting four different businesses in a week, learning through interactive business games, and spend the fifth day at a professional sports club where they learn about the psychology of resilience. They are given access to the SMBP App upon registration where they can access everything they need for the week, including additional career support, a skills zone, information on student finance plus much more. Following the week, the SMBP Career Mentoring platform then supports them through their journey to their chosen career.