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Community Engagement

The Bristol Legal Sector Community Engagement (CE) Group was set up in 2019 with the vision:

  • to have an overview and promote CE activity in the Bristol region in general and within the legal profession, to promote best practise, to function as a forum for support and to bring this varying activity together to maximise the positive impact of the legal profession on the Bristol region
  • to appoint and oversee the activity of sub working groups which may vary from time-to-time;
  • CE for the purposes of the Legal CE Forum/ Group covers charitable giving, volunteering, and in-kind support but does NOT include pro bono advice
  • The CE Legal Group covers the geographical areas of Bristol and Bath within a radius of circa thirty miles
  • Pro Bono advice is distinct from CE activities and a separate and independent group BRISTOL PRO BONO GROUP supports, promotes, and develops legal pro-bono work amongst the legal community in Bristol and the surrounding areas.
  • Please note that BRISTOL PRO BONO GROUP and the Legal CE Forum are both independent groups co-ordinated and run by the participating member firms and are NOT sub committees of Bristol Law Society
  • BRISTOL PRO BONO GROUP and the Legal CE Forum do have common participating members and liaise closely with each other where there is overlap or potential benefits to both groups in doing so

The group is chaired by Peter Morris and administered by Helen Read of Bristol Law Society. It meets on a quarterly basis and is kindly hosted on a rotating basis by participating organisations.

Supporting schools is a key activity of the group from volunteers getting involved in reading schemes, career fairs, mock interviews, mock trials and debating events to connecting with the early years’ talent teams in the law firms to provide school information days and work experience schemes. We invite firms to list their info days and work experience schemes on our careers job search facility to provide an accessible and common platform where schools, children and parents can look for such opportunities.

The Group also includes the Bristol Trustee Group, which aims to share information from local charities with Trustee requirements (often with a desire for legal experience) across the sector and to also support those charities with events and information on the legalities surrounding Trustee roles together with other key stakeholders in the City. You can find details of organisations looking for Trustees with legal experience through our careers search facility.

If you would like to join the meetings, have ideas for collaborative CE activities across the sector, wish to list Trustee vacancies or school information days and work experience opportunities please contact Helen.Read@bristollawsociety.com.