Early Careers Officer – Ipswich
Birketts is a full service, UK Top 50 law firm. With a heritage spanning 160 years, we have more than 700 lawyers and legal professionals and over 600 staff based in Bristol, Cambridge, Chelmsford, Ipswich, London, Norwich and Sevenoaks. We advise businesses, government and public sector organisations and individuals in the UK and internationally across four principal practice groups: Real Estate, Corporate Services, Dispute Resolution and Private Client.
We are defined by our Next Level Law proposition. We work with our clients as a proactive partner, horizon scanning and thinking ahead to the changes, challenges or opportunities that they may face.
Next Level Law is also applied to our people. Our collegiate culture means everyone is encouraged to achieve their next level in everything they do. RollOnFriday recently ranked us as the 6th best law firm to work at in 2026.
With our ambition to succeed, comes a strong desire to make a positive contribution to the communities we serve, and we are committed to delivering the objectives set out in our ESG strategy. Diversity plays an integral part in all that we do, with female partners comprising 45% of our partnership.
Our HR team sits within our wider Business Services Division. The team provide expert guidance and advice to managers and employees to support the effective delivery of HR processes across the firm.
The Early Careers Outreach Officer will support the Birketts early talent strategy by delivering outreach and engagement activites that attract, inform and build relationships with future candidates (school, college and university students). This will help maintain a strong pipeline of diverse early career talent while promoting Birketts brand and opportunities.
This position will work closely with the Early Careers Recruitment Manager to support with the recruitment of future lawyers and apprentices and ensure a high quality candidate experience.
Outreach & Engagement
- Organise and attend careers events, law fairs, and presentations at schools, colleges, and universities to represent Birketts
- Build and maintain relationships with key educational institutions and careers contacts
- Deliver engaging workshops, talks, and webinars on legal careers and routes into law
- Support widening participation and diversity initiatives through targeted outreach activity
- Identify new partnership opportunities to expand Birketts outreach potential
Early Careers Recruitment Support
- Assist with recruiting trainee solicitors, apprentices, and vacation scheme candidates
- Manage elements of the recruitment process including:
- Interview scheduling
- Candidate communications and feedback
- Online assessments and administration
- Support the organisation and delivery of vacation schemes and insight events
Employer Branding & Marketing
- Maintain and update early careers content across:
- Careers website
- Recruitment platforms
- Collaborate with marketing teams to produce:
- Social media content
- Videos and promotional materials
- Promote Birketts as an employer of choice within the early talent market
Candidate Experience & Onboarding
- Act as a key contact for early careers candidates, providing guidance and timely communication
- Support onboarding processes for trainees and apprentices
- Help ensure a seamless and positive journey from application through to joining
Data, Reporting & Insights
- Maintain accurate recruitment data and applicant tracking systems
- Produce reports and insights to support decision-making and improve outreach effectiveness
- Evaluate outreach and engagement activity to inform future strategy
Wider Team Support
- Work collaboratively with HR, marketing, and stakeholders across the firm
- Support coordination of early careers programmes and events
- Contribute to continuous improvement of processes and candidate attraction strategies
Please note that this job profile is not an exhaustive list of duties but merely an outline of the key components of the role. You may be required by your line manager to take on additional responsibilities when requested.
- Strong communication and presentation skills
- Experience in outreach, recruitment, or early careers engagement
- Ability to build relationships with a wide range of stakeholders
- Excellent organisational and event management skills
- Digital and social media awareness
- Data handling and reporting capability
- Awareness of employment law relating to recruitment
- Proactive and organised
- Collaborative and team-oriented
- Passionate about early careers and social mobility
- Customer-focused with strong attention to detail
Birketts is a flexible business which has embraced a hybrid working model where our colleagues enjoy a mix of home and office working. This role attracts a split of 60% office days and 40% working from home days per week
We welcome applications from people looking for flexible, agile, and part-time roles and we are happy to explore your preferred working patterns as part of your application.
As a Birketts colleague, you will be eligible to receive a wide range of benefits:
- 25 days holiday (FTE) plus Bank Holidays
- Long Service holiday award 1 extra week every 10 years continuous service
- Private Healthcare with BUPA (offered after probation is passed)
- Scottish Widows Pension Scheme (5% employer / 5% Employee)
- Staff Profit Share and Individual Performance Bonus Scheme
- Salary sacrifice (Pensions, Staff Profit Share)
- Life Assurance – 4 x salary / Permanent Health Insurance
- Paid CSR Day
- Enhanced Maternity/Paternity Leave
- Subsidised gym membership
- Electric car scheme
- Dress for your Day Policy
You can find out more on our website:https://www.birketts.co.uk/recognition-reward-benefits/
At Birketts, our culture is driven by ambition and a commitment to positively impact all the communities we serve. We are dedicated to the success, development, and wellbeing of our colleagues, helping them achieve their goals and seize the opportunities that come with our growth.
Birketts is committed to being an Equal Opportunity Employer. Our policy is unequivocal: we do not tolerate discrimination based on age, disability, sex, race, religion or belief, gender reassignment, marriage or civil partnership, pregnancy or maternity, or sexual orientation.
We pride ourselves on being an inclusive organisation that actively promotes equality of opportunity for all, valuing the right mix of talent, skills, and potential. We welcome applications from a diverse range of candidates, and selection for roles is based solely on individual merit.
If you require this advert in an accessible format, please visithttps://diversityjobsgroup.com/company/birketts/
At Birketts, we recognise the evolving role of artificial intelligence (AI) in the legal profession and recruitment. We welcome innovation and understand that candidates may use AI tools to support their job applications. However, we expect all applicants to use AI responsibly and ethically.
Our expectations regarding AI use in applications:
- Your application should reflect your own voice, experiences, and insights. AI may assist in structuring or refining your responses, but it must not replace your personal input.
- Do not use AI to misrepresent your qualifications, experiences, or skills. Any form of exaggeration or fabrication may result in rejection from the process.
- If you have used AI tools to assist with your application, be prepared to discuss how and why you used them during the interview process.
- Do not submit content generated by AI tools that may include personal or sensitive data not intended for public disclosure.
- AI-generated content should be reviewed and edited by you to ensure accuracy, relevance, and alignment with the role and our firms values.
We are committed to fair and inclusive recruitment practices. The use of AI should enhance, not compromise, your application. We encourage candidates to demonstrate critical thinking, commercial awareness, and a genuine interest in our firm.
If you have any questions about our expectations or the use of AI in your application, please contact our Talent Acquisition Team viatalent@birketts.co.uk
…