Winckworth Sherwood LLP |

Our clients range from some of the UK’s largest businesses and institutions, housebuilders and developers through to investors, professional partnerships, family offices, not for profit organisations and private individuals – all of which benefit from the flexible, practical approach of our lawyers.

We can trace our firm’s history back to 1777 and although much has changed in that time there is one constant: our desire to be a dependable, trusted advisor to our clients.

We are proud of our ability to adapt and truly understand the needs of our clients at any given point in time. Winckworth Sherwood has earned a reputation for successfully delivering high value, high profile projects throughout the UK and demonstrating the highest levels of client service.

Our core values unite us in the way we think, work and act. They are key to the success of our business and they influence how we interact with each other, our clients and wider society.

Think

• We are a progressive and forward-thinking firm
• We are confident that our diverse and idiosyncratic mix of people makes us stronger
• We take great pride in creating an environment that’s inclusive for everyone

Work

• We’re a hardworking and professional bunch of people
• We’re encouraged to find a vocational passion in our work and do more of what we love
• We relish nurturing people’s careers, backing entrepreneurial ideas and giving people their wings

Act

• We’re unusually friendly, down-to-earth and approachable for a law firm
• We’re respectful and treat people with positive intent because we believe everyone in the firm is fundamentally decent
• We thrive on sharing and being collaborative in the pursuit of better results

We have a three-stage recruitment process - a first stage interview with our Recruitment Manager, an assessment day in July at our London Bridge office and a final stage panel partner interview a couple of days later. We aim to get all offers out by the end of July.

What EDI means to us

We take great pride in creating an environment that is inclusive for all. We believe in creating opportunities for everyone to develop and progress their careers in a way which is right for them.

Our firmwide EDI Network comprises over 25 colleagues from across the business all focused on ensuring we are an inclusive, diverse and psychologically safe environment. With sponsorship and involvement from the firm’s leadership, the Network’s activities range from creating sub-networks around specific areas such as LGBTQ+ and disability, through to facilitating awareness raising talks and training on unconscious bias, allyship, disability and social equality.

We also understand that for many, a career in law is not the obvious choice and we work with a number of organisations to open up opportunities in the legal sector where the barriers to entry might seem insurmountable. Below are a few such organisations we are proud to support.

What our diversity statistics say about us

Ensuring our business is diverse and representative of the society we live in is not only the right thing to do, it also makes business sense. Differing viewpoints, life experiences and cultural backgrounds makes us better lawyers and a better business.

Below are some of our diversity statistics. Although we are proud of where we are as business, we fully recognise that delivering on EDI requires constant focus and we still have some way to go to realise our full potential as a truly diverse employer.

We didn’t write that headline lightly. ‘Life’ really is at the heart of what we do at Winckworth Sherwood. Whether the lives of the clients we represent or the lives of the people we work alongside.

We recognise that our people are vital to the success of the firm, and in return we are committed to their development and wellbeing. Our working environment is neither ruthlessly ambitious nor aggressively corporate. (One trainee told us he chose Winckworth Sherwood because he didn’t want to work “in a corporate snake pit” – which was good to hear.)

Of course we have uncompromising standards when it comes to client service and technical delivery. It’s just that we believe people are more productive when they are stimulated, challenged and motivated. So our culture is built on flexibility, enthusiasm, collaboration and a healthy work-life balance.

How does it all work?

To apply for a training contract at WS you need to apply for our Assessment Day.

All applications are screened by our Recruitment Manager, Ash Evans. We review applications using blind screening and contextualised recruitment. First round interviews are conducted by Ash via Microsoft Teams, Zoom or telephone if more convenient for you.

A shortlist of candidates is then given to our Training Partner to review. If you are successful at first interview you will be offered a place on our assessment day.

On the Assessment Day you will undertake group and individual tasks and will be assessed by partners at the firm. If successful, you will be invited to an interview with two of our partners later in the week. Once the partner interviews have taken place we will decide who to offer our eight training contracts to.

We will be holding two assessment days in July 2024.

How to Apply

For 2026 training contracts:

Applications open on 7th December 2023

Applications close on 29th February 2024

Applications are screened after the deadline. We will hold two assessment days in July 2024.

Please apply via our online application system.

We accept applications from law and non-law undergraduates and graduates. We will not be reviewing any applications until after the closing date.

Requirements

We recruit 8 trainees a year and we pride ourselves on our high retention rate which means that most years we retain the majority of our trainees as NQs. Our trainees are usually from a variety of backgrounds, and each has the potential to thrive as a lawyer in our firm. You should be intelligent, personable, confident and committed.

You should have:

• A strong academic record both at school and university
• Attributes that demonstrate how you would make a positive contribution to the firm
• An empathetic approach to clients
• A clear business head
• Evidence of interests and success in non-academic pursuits
• The ability to think creatively and flexibly in a fast-paced and changing legal environment

Hints and tips for applying

• Please make sure you check your application for grammar and spelling mistakes
• Try to make your application stand out from the crowd by highlighting your skills and achievements inside and out of university. This is your chance to sell yourself!
• Think about why you really want to work for Winckworth Sherwood rather than any other law firm and make sure that this comes across in your application