Commitment to the Community

Lyons Davidson is committed to the communities that our offices are part of.  As well as Lyons Davidson’s focus on local charities in 2011, we also maintain close links to the areas in which we do business. This includes forming and nurturing links with local educational facilities.

Careers academy
In Leeds, we have been involved with the Career Academy in law at Notre Dame Sixth Form College, since its launch in September 2009.  The Career Academy is a nationwide scheme designed to encourage and enable sixth-form students who are interested in entering a particular profession. It particularly emphasises those students who come from backgrounds where expectations of entry into higher education or professions are limited or non-existent. The Career Academy at Notre Dame is the first in the country to focus solely on law.  

The academy introduces students to all aspects of the legal system, including visits to the Supreme Court in London and talks on the academic and practical aspects of law by members of the profession. Lyons Davidson has delivered several lectures on civil litigation and on ILEX as a career route.  Students are also assigned mentors from local firms, and Lyons Davidson’s mentors offer their students a wide range of work experience across all its departments. They are also on hand to advise on how to write a CV and apply for university, participate in mock interviews, discuss alternative career paths and offer other types of practical support, such as attending university open days with their mentee.  We supply six mentors to the college each academic year.

Each summer, we offer a paid, six-week internship in the firm, where the student undertakes a project set by the department head, in conjunction with the Head of Law at the sixth form college.

In addition, Lyons Davidson partner Andrew King volunteers as a member of the law academy’s steering committee, which is made up of members of the local legal profession, college staff and students.

In November 2010, Lyons Davidson was invited to the Leeds Mentoring Awards, where we were delighted to be named one of the Firms of the Year.  Sarah Ingham and Andrew King received Business Mentor of the Year awards and, most pleasingly of all, two of our students also received awards, with our intern for summer 2010, Oliver Allanach, receiving the Outstanding Mentee of the Year award.

Lyons Davidson’s links with sixth formers is being expanded to include Bristol, Plymouth and New Malden.

Lyons Davidson’s links with local universities

Cardiff
Many of our staff in Cardiff are graduates of the university there, and we actively encourage students to get involved in the company. Lyons Davidson is a proud sponsor of law exam awards and each year, we also take on students for work experience.  

Plymouth
Lyons Davidson is a significant employer in the city, and over the past two or three years, our Plymouth office has been building strong links with Plymouth University, the largest university in the South West. It actively recruits Plymouth graduates and students who have completed its LPC course. As well as placing stalls at graduate fairs and recruitment fairs, the company regularly hosts networking cheese and wine parties for graduates. Our defendant and claimant groups in particular take on large numbers of Plymouth alumni.