Managing Partners, Heads of Office & HR Manager - SQE Forum
We have pleasure in inviting Managing Partners, Heads of Office & HR Managers to attend the follow up SQE meeting on Tuesday the 17th of March from 4.00pm to 6.00pm at Muckle LLP.
This will be of particular interest to those that contributed to the initial discussion held in December 2024 but is also likely to be of interest to other Managing Partners & HR Managers. This meeting will review the outcomes of the SQE report that was written on behalf of the Society and its members and submitted to the SRA. We are delighted to announce that Julie Swan, Director, Education & Training at the SRA has agreed to join us for this roundtable discussion. Invitations will follow and will include the SQE report.
Some background information and review of the initial meeting
In December 2024, Newcastle Law Society convened a forum with Managing Partners, HR Managers and Trainees from local law firms together with education providers to share experiences of the SQE and inform a submission to Kaplan and the SRA. The discussion highlighted the need for earlier intervention ahead of the SRA’s phase four evaluation, to better support wellbeing, accessibility, and the SRA’s objectives around diversity, affordability and widened participation.
The forum called for greater regulation, quality control and consistency across SQE preparation courses, noting that a more standardised approach would improve clarity and enable providers to support students more effectively. Participants also raised concerns about limited communication between the SRA and providers, suggesting that the NDA and the nature of existing sample questions restrict meaningful support; more realistic and detailed example questions were recommended.
Finally, the forum identified improvements to the exam booking and delivery process as key to student wellbeing, including a more accessible approach to reasonable adjustments, more frequent exam sittings, quicker results, and a wider geographical spread of test centres.
Please email the Society to register your place mail@newcastlelawsociety.co.uk