Pros
Some colleagues were supportive and hardworking.
Cons
The Practice has serious issues with management, accountability and the treatment of junior staff. In my experience, junior employees are often thrown into work without proper training, clear handovers or meaningful supervision, then blamed when things go wrong. There is a pattern of people being expected to pick up unfinished or poorly managed work, only for errors or wider process failures to be pushed down onto those with the least authority.
This becomes especially damaging during performance reviews. Rather than looking at the full context, including lack of training, unclear instructions, poor management and unrealistic workloads, responsibility is placed on junior staff. This can affect progression, pay reviews and confidence, while managers continue to take credit for the hard work carried by those beneath them. The result is a culture where junior employees feel disposable.
The management of people is poor and at times deeply unprofessional. Certain long-standing members of staff appear to be protected regardless of their conduct, while more junior employees are left feeling isolated, undermined or bullied. Concerns are not always handled seriously or fairly, and there seems to be a reluctance to hold established staff accountable even when behaviour is widely known.
The firm promotes itself as inclusive, supportive and values-led, but my experience did not reflect that in practice. I witnessed behaviour and comments from management that felt dismissive, inappropriate and uncomfortable, particularly in relation to women. There are individuals in management whose behaviour has reportedly caused significant distress, yet meaningful accountability appears limited.
The impact on wellbeing should not be underestimated. Poor management, lack of support and unfair treatment can seriously affect mental health, yet these concerns do not appear to be treated with the seriousness they deserve. When staff are struggling, the response should be care, professionalism and proper management, not dismissive attitudes or jokes about their position becoming worse once pay or support runs out.
Overall, the Practice needs to confront the gap between the culture it advertises and the culture some junior staff actually experience. There is a difference between saying the right things about inclusion, wellbeing and development and actually building a workplace where people are trained properly, treated fairly and protected from poor conduct.
