Paralegal Review

My role in the organisation as a paralegal is to assist lawyers with their work. On a day to day basis i could be doing things like updating our internal legal database so our line manager knows what everyone is working on. I could be preparing documents for Court, or even going to Court hearings. I could be writing a case summary or conducting legal research. The role we have in this organisation is very flexible and instead of doing a lot of admin work we are able to advise clients in the organisation on legal queries.

Since working at the Service, i have learnt so much. Coming from school it is a bit daunting to be in an environment you are not used to and where everyone seems a bit older than you. However, i have learnt so much legal terminology that i never knew from studying law at A-level. I am building my communication skills daily. The key skills i am developing which are needed to be a qualified paralegal are my analysis skills and attention to detail. These are really important in the legal profession. I have also had the opportunity to attend external legal courses which is also a good opportunity to meet people from other firms or organisations and find out more about their careers.

I am really enjoying my programme at the moment, everyone in my team are great. When i first started they all took time to talk with me and tell me about the work they do, they're always there if you have any questions and always willing to help. The values of the company really shine through, and many people say the best thing about working here is the people. My expectations have been exceeded i did not expect it to be anything like the way it has turned out.

My programme is really well structured, the first week i expected to be sat at a desk working straight away. However, this was not the case. The whole first week was set aside for an induction for all the new apprentices across the organisation. During this week we did team-building activities and got the chance to sit in our teams for a few hours each day. This was a really good start as we all got to meet each other, and we all knew we was similar ages in the same boat. This put a lot of us at ease and was a good chance to make friends to keep in touch with. For my programme my line manager allows me 1 day a week every week to study which works well for me. I have both a mentor and a buddy who help me with anything i need. They are also there on a personal level as well, you can talk to them about pretty much anything. Tasks are delegated well, and if you have too much work on or need someones assistance with something everyone is always willing to help.

My Line manager is very supportive and has supported me throughout my programme. We have regular catch-ups every 2 weeks to speak about what i'm working on and how i am finding things. Our apprentice programme partner in HR has been supportive she checks up on me to see how i am doing if there is any issues she will resolve them. My mentor is great at giving support we also have catch-ups every 2 weeks and i think of a topic i want to discuss and we talk about this. She also really helps me with my studying and explains things to me clearly if i don't understand. There is so much support in the organisation not just my team, there are sessions where you can have 1-2-1 mental health support, there are a range of networks that are there to support you.

My training provider have been helpful there have been a few issues along the way with things such as communication, but after speaking with our apprenticeship partner i had a review with someone senior at BPP an the issue has been resolved. We have a tutor for whichever topic we are working on who we can contact, we also have a coach who we can contact and we have regular calls to catch up. We also have an apprenticeship manager who we can contact. I think the main focus is that everything is online, we rarely go to BPP so some people may find that hard to learn everything virtually, but the support is there you just need to make use of it.

We were allowed a choice of different modules that we studied, this gave us the chance to choose the ones which were relevant to our work. Therefore, the studying i am doing is helping me on a day to day basis. I feel my studying is helpful towards the job i am doing but i think time will tell.

There is a variety of events to get involved in, there is a sport and social network who arrange external events and the tickets are relatively cheap, anyone can go along. We as a team are also taking part in the London Legal Walk. There is a lady who comes in and offers massages which you can have for example at lunch or after work. We also have free access to a gym, there are a range of classes some are free, some are a small fee. Within our team we try to arrange social events, sometimes we all go for a team breakfast. We go to restaurants for team lunches and sometimes we go for after work drinks.

Yes

They are a really good company to work for, there are so many benefits we are entitled to. Also as i have previously said the people here are really great. Apprenticeships were new for them when i joined and i think they have adapted well to it they are able to support us and encourage us in our careers.

Not to be shy, the application process can seem hard as there is a few stages but they want to make sure you are the right person for the job. It can be daunting, a lot of interviews always are but you just need to be yourself. Act interested in the role you are applying for and use all the experience you have had and adapt them to the right situations.