Apprenticeships: what they offer the legal services sector

CILEx Law School has delivered legal apprenticeship training to over 200 young people over the last three years. Apprentices are employed by law firms, in-house legal departments and local authorities for a specified period, during which they receive training leading to a recognised qualification, as well as developing workplace skills. The training costs are currently met by the government if the apprentices meet certain eligibility criteria.

What apprenticeships are available for the legal sector?

Current schemes include the Advanced Apprenticeship in Legal Services and the Higher Apprenticeship in Legal Services, which were both introduced in 2013. Young people who complete these schemes gain the necessary knowledge of law and practice, and acquire the requisite workplace skills, to be effective paralegals in their selected areas of legal practice. There are also Intermediate Apprenticeships in Legal or Business Administration, set at GCSE-level , which are commonly used to train young people in file administration and business support roles such as legal process work, HR and data entry.

The Advanced and Higher Apprenticeships both offer exemptions from elements of the CILEx professional qualification. These programmes will continue to attract public funding for apprentices starting before September 2016, after which funding will switch to the new Trailblazer apprenticeship schemes. Intermediate Apprenticeships will continue to attract funding until 2017.

What is a Trailblazer Apprenticeship?

The government has approved new Apprenticeship Standards for many employment sectors under the Trailblazer initiative (see page 12 of this issue).

The CILEx Group has contributed to the development of the new Trailblazer standards for the legal sector, which include paralegal, Chartered Legal Executive and solicitor schemes. The main difference between the Trailblazer Paralegal Apprenticeship and its forerunners is that the current schemes test knowledge and competence throughout the course of the apprenticeship, whereas achievement of a Trailblazer apprenticeship depends on passing a synoptic end-point assessment. The funding will be different under Trailblazers too.

How does apprenticeship training differ from CILEx traditional vocational training?

All apprenticeships have to include the delivery of knowledge and competence. The knowledge element compares with the law and practice units in the CILEx vocational qualification. For example, in the property pathway of the Advanced Apprenticeship in Legal Services, apprentices learn about land law and conveyancing, and are tested in exam conditions.

The competence units compare loosely with the professional skills units in the vocational qualification, but are broader, and include, for example, ethics, technical legal skills (such as research and drafting), working with others and personal development. Apprentices have to demonstrate that they are able to perform these skills successfully in the workplace.

Lower-level apprenticeships also include functional skills to ensure that apprentices meet the necessary standards in English, maths and IT.

I’ve seen some negative media stories about apprenticeships. Why is that?

There has been a lot of media coverage about the misuse of the term ‘apprenticeship’ . The government is seeking to define the meaning of the word by statute, so that only high-calibre and government-funded schemes can use the term.

All apprenticeships available through CILEx Law School for the legal sector are eligible for funding, meaning that they are already strictly monitored to ensure that they deliver knowledge and workplace skills. The money payable by the government is paid out to the training provider in instalments, with a significant percentage being retained until all elements have been completed. This ensures that the schemes are delivering value for money to the taxpayer.

What are the benefits to an employer?

Employers benefit in a number of ways. Currently, if a young person is still 18 years of age on the date they sign their apprenticeship paperwork with the training provider when in employment, the apprenticeship is funded in full. Approximately 50% of training costs are met for those aged 19–23 . There is some contribution for those over 24.

Funding for Trailblazer schemes will be different. The employer will pay £1 for every £2 of public funding, but the employer contribution can be offset by incentives available for apprentices aged 16–18 and for organisations with fewer than 50 employees. There will also be a payment to reward success if the apprenticeship is completed. The training funds and incentive payments will be drawn down from a £15,000 voucher, which all commercial organisations will receive from government. All businesses with a payroll of £3m will have to pay a levy of 0.5% of payroll from April 2017 to help to fund the cost of apprenticeships.

As well as funded training, apprenticeships give employers the opportunity to mould enthusiastic and motivated young people into the ways of the organisation. As Lisa Keating, recoveries manager at Shoosmiths explains: ‘We are a modern, forwardlooking national firm with a focus on people, relationships and results. We see the legal services apprenticeship as an opportunity to nurture prospective legal advisors in the ethos of our firm alongside the study of law and practice.’

What are the benefits to young people?

The most immediate benefit is that young people choosing apprenticeships over university will avoid any student debt.

Additionally, according to research from the Sutton Trust, apprentices in top-quality schemes will be paid £50,000 more during their lifetime than undergraduates at all but Britain’s top universities, earning close to £1.5m over their career. Approximately 17,000 young people resident in England and Wales graduate with law degrees each year. Getting into a law firm as a legal apprentice is a great way of beating the competition and securing a first job in the sector.

The Advanced Apprenticeship in Legal Services delivers the knowledge and skills to work as a paralegal. It also offers exemptions from part of the training route to become a Chartered Legal Executive, so entering as a legal apprentice is no barrier to success. The new Trailblazer Apprenticeships will offer young people the chance to sign up from the outset to become a paralegal or to qualify as either a Chartered Legal Executive or solicitor in the context of secure employment and funded training. Many organisations adopt apprenticeship schemes with the stated objective of finding their leaders of the future.

The government sets a minimum wage for apprentices, which is currently £3.30 per hour. However, legal apprentices are usually offered salaries in the region of £12,000– £15,000 per year, rising to £18,000 in the City.

Why don’t parents and school leavers know much about apprenticeships?

Schools have historically been judged on the number of pupils going to university, and so have often not promoted apprenticeships as an alternative choice. In fact, some schools actively dissuade brighter pupils from considering this option.

The government is working hard to raise the profile of apprenticeships. Legal services employers who have seen the value of apprenticeship programmes are also keen to broadcast their success, in order to increase the flow of young talent applying for the next round of recruitment.

What do legal apprenticeships lead to?

International law firm Addleshaw Goddard took on its first cohort of apprentices in September 2013. Mike Potter, head of the transaction services team, said: ‘We recruited apprentices with sound A levels coupled with first-class training through CILEx Law School, and we have been more than impressed with the contribution that apprentices have made to the organisation.’

Eight of the original intake have now taken up Grade 1 paralegal posts with full funding by the firm for further training to qualify as Chartered Legal Executives. A further 12 young people were taken on in autumn 2015.

The same experience is shared by many of our employer clients who have taken on a second or third cohort of apprentices. Over 90% of apprentices who have completed their programmes with CILEx Law School’s clients have been retained by their employers in paralegal roles and many are continuing their studies to become Chartered Legal Executives.

The route is proving to be a winning formula for employers and those looking for a career in law.