Allen & Overy enters top 10 UK employers for social mobility

The Index – considered the leading authority on employer-led social mobility – is an annual benchmarking tool for organisations looking to understand how they are performing on social mobility and to identify areas for improvement.

In the past year the firm has identified social mobility cold spots based on research by the Social Mobility Commission to effectively direct community investment. In particular, we have focused on the city of Liverpool, investing in place-based initiatives to support communities to thrive and create sustainable change, such as Right to Succeed’s Cradle to Career programme. Our support will help Right to Succeed deliver a youth offer forming part of their work tackling exclusions for children and young people, in consultation with local stakeholders.

Within the firm, further research has been done to develop data around pay, progression and retention in the workplace, such as data published in the firm’s UK Pay Gap Report. This is helping to create the transparency and accountability needed to ensure everyone has the same opportunities once they join the firm and beyond. 

James Partridge, Early Careers Recruitment partner and chair of the firm’s Social Mobility Working Group, commented: “We are very proud to be within the top 10 employers in the UK in the Social Mobility Employer Index. We know how important it is not only to create the right environment within our firm for everyone to have the best opportunities, but also to engage with communities and offer our support to young people where we can, to help them take the best first steps in their careers.”