Social Mobility
Opening doors and creating opportunities for people from all backgrounds
At Blake Morgan, we are committed to widening access to the legal profession and ensuring that talented individuals can succeed regardless of their background. Our Social Mobility workstream focuses on removing barriers to entry and progression, creating meaningful opportunities and helping individuals reach their full potential.
We recognise that social mobility remains a significant challenge within the legal sector, particularly for those from lower socio-economic backgrounds or without established networks. Our approach is centred on creating a more equitable and inclusive environment, where career opportunities are accessible and achievable for all.
Through partnerships, outreach activity and internal initiatives, we aim to inspire ambition, support career development and provide practical pathways into the profession. This includes supporting colleagues throughout their careers with Blake Morgan, as well as engaging with schools, colleges and universities within our regions to raise the ambitions of young people from underrepresented backgrounds.
By taking a proactive and collaborative approach, we are working to ensure that the legal profession better reflects the diverse communities it serves.
Main areas of focus
Opening Doors
Opening Doors is Blake Morgan’s Social Mobility network which is made up of colleagues throughout our office network who have a passion for social mobility and widening access to the legal profession. They work to improve social mobility across Blake Morgan by helping to create a workplace where everyone can thrive, regardless of their background or circumstances. The group champions greater access to opportunities, supports initiatives that widen participation in the legal profession, and works collaboratively across the firm to remove barriers to attraction, progression and inclusion. Through awareness raising, education, community partnerships and colleague engagement, the network helps ensure talent is recognised and nurtured wherever it is found.
Widen access to legal careers
We are committed to widening access to legal careers through initiatives such as work experience, apprenticeships and employability programmes. This includes developing structured opportunities that introduce individuals to the profession and support them to take their first steps into a legal career.
Build connections and networking opportunities
We help colleagues and (through our partnerships) individuals from underrepresented backgrounds to build connections through mentoring, and networking opportunities. These initiatives help to raise aspirations, provide guidance and create meaningful pathways into the profession.
Confidence and community
We focus on building confidence and supporting long-term success by providing mentoring programmes, training, resources and a supportive environment. Through community engagement and collaboration with external organisations, we also aim to create lasting impact both within the firm and across the wider community.
Key contacts
Gemma Spiceley (she/her) | Partner | Social Mobility Inclusion Champion
Gemma is the firm’s Social Mobility Inclusion Champion, leading the development of the workstream and driving initiatives to widen access to the legal profession and support individuals from under-represented backgrounds.
As a state educated, first generation graduate, Gemma is a firm believer that it is what you do when you arrive and not how you get there that defines a career. Her aim is that through our Social Mobility initiatives, Blake Morgan can inspire that belief in the next generation of aspiring legal professionals.
The workstream is actively identifying opportunities where we can improve diversity in recruitment and promotion at all levels and where we can work in partnership with organisations such as GROW Mentoring to promote access. Blake Morgan has a reputation of doing what it says when it comes to EDI and social mobility is an area where we can have a real impact on people’s lives.
Tanya Barrett (she/her) | Legal Director | Social Mobility group member
Tanya is a Legal Director in Blake Morgan’s Property Litigation team in Cardiff and a member of the Firm’s Social Mobility steering group.
Tanya enjoys mentoring colleagues and supporting them to learn and develop their skills and progress in their careers.
Tanya is involved in supervising trainee solicitors and apprentices within the Property Litigation team in Cardiff and has supported colleagues to qualify as solicitors via alternative means.
Tanya joined the firm’s Social Mobility steering group as a firm believer that, no matter your socio-economic background, careers in law should be accessible to as many people as possible and that a wide variety of backgrounds among lawyers is hugely beneficial.
Jasmine Castle-McKenzie (she/her) | Trainee Solicitor | Social Mobility group member
Jasmine Castle-McKenzie is a Trainee Solicitor in Blake Morgan’s Southampton office and is an active member of the firm’s Social Mobility steering group. Drawing on her own experience of social mobility, Jasmine is passionate about helping to break down barriers to the legal profession and ensuring that talent can thrive regardless of background.
As a member of the Social Mobility steering group, Jasmine supports initiatives that widen access to the legal profession and create career opportunities for people from all backgrounds. Through mentoring, networking and outreach, she is committed to opening doors to the legal profession, raising awareness of social mobility and fostering a more inclusive workplace.
As someone at the beginning of their legal career, Jasmine brings a junior perspective to the steering group, helping to ensure that experiences and views of junior colleagues are represented. Being part of the Social Mobility steering group allows her to contribute to the meaningful changes within the firm while supporting a culture that values diversity, collaboration and inclusion alongside excellence.
Jasmine believes that increasing access to the legal profession benefits not only individuals but the profession as a whole by bringing a broader range of perspectives, experiences and ideas.
Lilly Henry (she/her) | Senior Learning and Development Advisor | Social Mobility group member
Lilly’s route into the workplace wasn’t a straightforward one. She didn’t finish school and had to work hard to get her qualifications up to scratch in the years following, needing opportunities where she could find them to bulk up her CV. Lilly had help from contacts at apprenticeship providers who would find courses and options available to her with the skillset she had. She then managed to secure work experience at Blake Morgan which is where her career really began. After completing her work experience, Lilly secured a fixed term contract at the firm. She would later move into a full-time role in the Learning and Development team where the firm has since funded her L&D apprenticeship.
Having the support of course providers in the years she needed to bulk up her CV, being given opportunities to gain certificates in a range of skills is what got Lilly’s foot in the door – hard work, persistence and being able to then complete an apprenticeship is what kept her there.
That’s why Social Mobility is important to Lilly and why she wanted to join the steering group. She wants to play a part in ensuring we have opportunities that keep the door open to people who would struggle to get into the workplace otherwise.
Elaine Law (she/her) | CRM Lead | Social Mobility group member
Elaine Law is a CRM Lead within Blake Morgan’s Business Development and Marketing team and a member of the firm’s Social Mobility Steering group.
Elaine is passionate about social mobility and is proud to support the work of the steering group. Her interest in this area is influenced by examples of social mobility within her wider family, which have highlighted how access to opportunities, support and encouragement can have a lasting impact on people’s lives and careers. She believes that talent exists everywhere, but opportunity does not, making it important for organisations to help break down barriers and create more inclusive pathways into professions.
As part of the steering group, Elaine supports initiatives that promotes awareness of social mobility and helps open doors for people from a wide range of backgrounds. She particularly enjoys taking part in outreach and engagement activities, including working with schools and sharing career experiences that help others explore opportunities for their future careers. Through her involvement, she hopes to contribute to a workplace and profession where people are judged by their potential and ability, rather than their background or circumstances.
Sue Lindop (she/her) | Senior Resourcing Advisor | Social Mobility group member
As a Senior Resourcing Advisor at Blake Morgan and a member of the firm’s Social Mobility steering group, Sue is dedicated to improving social mobility and helping to ensure that talent is recognised regardless of background.
Sue believes that everyone should have the opportunity to build a successful career based on their potential, rather than the circumstances they were born into.
As a member of the Social Mobility Steering Group, Sue brings her recruitment knowledge to discussions on how the firm can attract and recruit talented people from a broad range of socioeconomic backgrounds.
She believes that creating a workplace where everyone feels they belong and has the opportunity to succeed, strengthens the firm’s culture and enables Blake Morgan to better serve its clients and communities.
Rebecca Munday (she/her) | Associate | Social Mobility group member
Becky is an Associate in Blake Morgan’s Construction team and has worked for Blake Morgan since she joined the firm 10 years ago. Becky is a first-generation solicitor and the first member of her family to attend university, and has first-hand experience of the challenges that aspiring solicitors face when trying to break into such a competitive industry.
Becky has been an active member of the Social Mobility steering group and has played a key role in maintaining Blake Morgan’s partnership with GROW Mentoring, a social mobility charity offering mentoring opportunities to aspiring solicitors. Notable examples include being the lead contact with the charity in the organisation of the Blake Morgan Insight Day in 2023, and the inaugural GROW Mentoring ‘Beyond the City’ Conference held in Birmingham in 2026, marking the first GROW event held outside of London.
Through her work with the Social Mobility steering, Becky is committed to helping shape a more diverse legal profession which benefits both the profession and the clients it serves.
Sarah Price (she/her) | Legal Director | Social Mobility group member
Sarah is passionate about social mobility. She strongly believes that everyone, regardless of background, should have equal opportunities to enter the legal profession.
Sarah’s own experience means that she knows what it is like for young people who do not think they can embark on a legal career due to their education or social background.
Sarah has supported students attending Blake Morgan’s work experience programmes and she attends the steering group’s Social Mobility meetings on a regular basis. In future, Sarah hopes to have a more active role in events and initiatives to help open doors for future lawyers.
Kieran Sale (he/him) | Trainee Solicitor | Social Mobility group member
Kieran Sale is a Trainee Solicitor, and is a new member to the Social Mobility steering group.
He comes from a working-class background, growing up in the outskirts of Birmingham, and was the first in his family to go to university.
Kieran became a member of the steering group to support the team by contributing to initiatives that improve access, raise awareness of the barriers people from lower socioeconomic backgrounds can face, and to help foster a culture where diverse experiences are valued and appreciated in the workplace.
He says it is important to recognise that not everyone starts with the same blank canvas, as everyone is not presented with the same opportunities to reach their full potential. Being part of the steering group provides him with the chance to work on projects that will lead to opportunities for aspiring lawyers, but also, to raise awareness of this point.
Emily Shaw (she/her) | HR Advisor | Social Mobility group member
Emily is an HR Advisor based in the Southampton office and is an active member of the Social Mobility steering group.
From completing an apprenticeship herself, Emily understands the importance of offering alternative routes into the profession and opening doors for those who have not had traditional routes or networks available to them.
Emily helps to remove barriers by supporting initiatives that widen access and progression, including outreach, apprenticeships and work experience.
Emily’s aim in the steering group is to contribute to a culture where people are supported to reach their potential, regardless of their starting point.
Kath Shimmin (she/her) | Partner | Social Mobility group member
Kath is a Partner in Blake Morgan’s Banking and Finance team, supporting lenders, borrowers and businesses on complex finance transactions. Alongside her client work, she has played an active role in Blake Morgan’s equality, diversity and inclusion activity, including as a former Gender Champion and chair of the firm’s Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Committee.
Kath is particularly passionate about social mobility and widening access to the legal profession. Through the Social Mobility steering group, she supports work to build stronger links with regional universities, further education colleges, schools and community partners, helping young people from non-traditional backgrounds understand, access and progress within the law.
She also sees mentoring and outreach as practical ways to raise aspirations and demystify legal careers. She is keen to help students, trainees and early-career professionals build confidence, understand the different routes into the profession, and connect with role models who can offer encouragement, guidance and insight.
Kath brings senior leadership experience, a practical understanding of inclusive cultures, and a commitment to making EDI part of everyday decision-making. She supports initiatives that open doors, encourage mentoring and sponsorship, and help colleagues feel confident that they belong and can thrive at Blake Morgan.
Julia Smith (she/her) | Senior Internal Communications Executive | Social Mobility group member
Julia manages internal communications for Blake Morgan and works closely with the EDI committee in this capacity. She is also a member of the Social Mobility steering group and helps to identify opportunities and create content to build awareness around routes into the profession, work experience programmes and alternative career stories. Julia believes that everyone deserves to pursue a career they love and that breaking down barriers to access benefits everyone.
Partnerships and resources
GROW Mentoring – supporting mentoring partnerships that provide guidance, insight and career support for aspiring legal professionals.
Visit the GROW Mentoring website here.
2B Enterprising – works with businesses and schools to create opportunities and develop the entrepreneurial skills of young people.
Visit the 2B Enterprising website here.
Shaping Portsmouth – has a mission to make Portsmouth a number one city to invest, live, work and learn. Through partnerships with local businesses such as Blake Morgan, it supports education and skills development to encourage residents of Portsmouth of all ages to explore their future and improve their employability.
Visit the Shaping Portsmouth website here.
Moxie – Working Wardrobe – provides free work wear across Wales for those going for interviews and starting a new job, so that career aspirations are not restricted by lack of access to quality clothing.
Visit the Moxie People Working Wardrobe website here.
Social Mobility Pledge – Blake Morgan has made the pledge to (i) work to reach out to schools or colleges to provide quality careers advice, enrichment experience and mentoring; (ii) provide structured work experience and apprenticeship opportunities to people from disadvantaged backgrounds or circumstances; and (iii) work to adopt open employee recruitment practices which promote a level playing field for people from disadvantaged backgrounds or circumstances.
Visit the Social Mobility Pledge website here.
