Slaughter and May Power Hours
17/10/11
C6 students studying in a range of subject areas recently participated in the leading international law firm Slaughter and May's Power Hours.
Power Hours involve spending lunchtime with employees at Slaughter and May and finding out about their role in the company, how they use their knowledge and skills on a day to day basis and how they got into their career. The sessions are quite informal which gives the students the chance to feel at ease and ask questions.
So far the following sessions have taken place:
- 13th October – A level Law students met Dipak Bhunda, Lawyer
- 13th October – Business BTEC students met John Jones, Finance
- 20th October – Business BTEC students met Alan Fitzgerald, Facilities
- 3rd November A Level ICT students met Irhan Mittel and Des Robinson, ICT
Finance Session at Slaughter and May
Tynan Calderazzo writes:
'Our visit to Slaughter and May was a very interesting and beneficial trip, as it gave us all an insight to what exactly accountants do and how to become an accountant. John Jones who has been an accountant for 32 years, thoroughly explained his job to us and what he has to do on a daily basis, including monitoring Slaughter & May’s cash flow every single day, producing profit & loss accounts every month and producing a full balance sheet once a year. These are the three accounts that we are studying in Unit 5 with Ms Thain, so John explaining how often these accounts are used in a business, was valuable to us because we now have a clear understanding of why and how they are used.
Also, John explained the path he had taken to become an accountant, and I thought it was very interesting that someone who had average GCSE and A Level results was able to become a financial manager at such an established company. John made us realise that there are many pathways to becoming an accountant and although he studied at university for 5 years it is also possible to study while you are working.'
Tynan Calderazzo, Year 12 BTEC Business Level 3 student
Facilities Session at Slaughter and May
Slaughter and May hosted a power hour on facilities by their facilities manager. Students were studying a BTEC Level 3 course and part of their coursework was for students to write about the different physical resources used by the business.
The power hour was very informative and engaging, which involved a discussion about the various resources used by the business. Students quickly moved onto the topic of careers in Slaughter and May and were inspired to hear about the employment and academic history of the facilities manager. Students were very engaged as they could personally speak to a member of staff that deals with the smooth running of the business. They were very excited and shocked to hear the room they were sitting in was also used by famous footballers to sign their contracts with football clubs and it was the duty of the facilities manager to ensure the room met their high standards and presented their businesses well.
At the end of the power hour, some students stated they were very much ‘inspired’ by the facilities manager, who had many obstacles in school yet through hard work and determination achieved a great deal throughout his life and as his role as the facilities manager in Slaughter and May.
Slaughter and May Power Lunch
Holly Brooks-Burgin and Tahmid Chowdhury write:
The best thing about Ben and Jerry’s is the free ice cream tasters they give-and the best thing about Slaughter and May was our taster of Law. After taking the short walk to Slaughter and May, one of the UK’s leading solicitors’ firms, we met Dipak Bhunda, a young, aspirational solicitor.
Dipak enlightened us about the world of a career in Law, guiding us through his own personal story from school right up to where he is today. We were informed of some of the recent popular successes of Slaughter and May, including the purchase of the Emirates Stadium by Arsenal FC and the recent Liverpool FC takeover.
Following our creative discussion we were given the opportunity to raise questions, points of debate and receive advice from the man himself. As we munched away our free lunch, in awe of the man in our presence, we learnt more and more about the corporate world of Law, and in many cases whether we wanted to pursue it or not. It was awesome.
Holly Brooks-Burgin and Tahmid Chowdhury Year 12 AS Law students
Central Foundation Boys’ School has been working on a number of projects with the prestigious law firm since 2008. To find out more visit the Slaughter and May website.
Highbury Grove School,
Highbury Fields School
Cental Foundation Boys' School
St Aloysius' College