The Renting Homes (Wales) Act 2016 (RHWA) is finally due to be implemented on 1 December 2022.

It will substantially reform the basis on which residential property in Wales is occupied, by creating two new forms of occupation contract:

1. A standard contract, modelled on the present assured shorthold tenancy (AST).
2. A secure contract, modelled on secure tenancies and assured tenancies.

If a tenancy or licence meets certain criteria it will be an “occupation contract” and subject to the provisions of the RHWA.

The parties will be known as Landlords and Contract Holders.

This article focuses on standard contracts. Secure contracts will be used by local authorities and social housing landlords, although private landlords will be able to offer a secure contract if they wish to do so.

Standard Contracts: the basics

The standard contract will be available as either a periodic or a fixed term contract.

It will replace the AST entirely – after 1 December 2022 it will not be possible to grant a new AST in Wales and the Housing Act regimes will no longer apply to Welsh residential properties.

Section 7 confirms that a tenancy or licence is an occupation contract if all of the following apply:

• It is made between a landlord and an individual (or two or more persons, at least one of whom is an individual).
• It gives the individual(s) the right to occupy a dwelling as a home.
• Rent or other consideration (such as providing a service) is payable under it.

Points to Note:

• There is no minimum or maximum rent threshold, unlike traditional ASTs.
• The section 7 test does not refer to exclusive possession, hence licences will fall within the scope of the RHWA.
• “Dwelling” as defined in section 246:

• includes any land occupied with the dwelling, unless the land is “agricultural land” which extends to more than 1.999 acres.
• excludes any structure or vehicle which can be moved (e.g. caravans, boats, mobile homes).

Many licences and common law tenancies which previously fell outside the Housing Act regime will fall within the ambit of the RHWA, conferring statutory protection on residential occupiers who have historically had precarious and limited rights.

Exclusions to RHWA

Certain tenancies and licences are not occupation contracts, unless notice is given to create one[1]. These include:

• Holiday lets
• Accommodation shared with the landlord

Further, certain tenancies and licences are never occupation contracts[2]. These include:

• Rent Act arrangements:
  • A protected occupancy or statutory tenancy within the meaning of the Rent Act 1977 (RA 1977).
  • A protected occupancy or statutory tenancy within the meaning of the Rent (Agriculture) Act 1976.
• Commercial leases under Landlord and Tenant Act 1954.
• Agricultural Holdings Act 1986 tenancies.
• Farm Business Tenancies under the Agricultural Tenancies Act 1995.
• A tenancy or licence if all the persons with whom it is made are below the age of 18.
• A secure tenancy that is a housing association tenancy within the meaning of section 86 of the RA 1977.
• A long tenancy (for a fixed term exceeding 21 years).

Core Content

Standard contracts will contain the following terms:

• Key matters:
  • e.g. the names of the parties, rent payable, address of the property, fixed term or periodic.
  • These must be inserted in every contract.
• Fundamental Terms:
  • Cover the most important aspects of the contract, including the possession procedures and repairing obligations.
  • Some may be omitted or varied by agreement but only in favour of the contract holder.
• Supplementary Terms:
  • Deal with the more practical, day to day matters applying to the occupation contract, e.g., use of dwelling for business purposes, ability to carry out alterations.
  • They can be omitted or varied by agreement, provided that is compatible with the fundamental terms.
• Additional Terms:
  • Any other matters specifically agreed by the parties, e.g., the keeping of pets.
  • Any additional terms must be fair, as required by the Consumer Rights Act 2015 and must not conflict with a key matter, fundamental term or supplementary term.

Key provisions applying to all contracts

• a written statement of the terms + prescribed explanatory information must be given to the contract holder free of charge within 14 days of the occupation date.
• failure to provide the written statement can lead to financial penalties for landlords / compensation for the contract-holder and will restrict a landlord’s ability to serve a valid notice to terminate the contract.
• A Model Contract has been published by Senedd Cymru / Welsh Government: see Renting Homes: model written statements

• A joint-contract holder can leave the contract without ending the contract entirely
• The rights of the other joint contract-holder(s) will not be affected, and they will be bound by the same terms, as before.
• New joint-contract holders can be added without having to end the current contract and start another one.

• Landlords will be entitled to increase the rent under periodic standard contracts annually, following service of two months’ notice.
• Prescribed form notices must be used.
• Rent review under fixed term contracts will be governed by the terms agreed between the parties.

• There are some differences to the section 11 Landlord & Tenant Act 1985 provisions that previously applied.
• Landlords must:
  • keep the structure and exterior of the dwelling in repair;
  • keep the installations for the supply of water, gas, electricity, sanitation, space heating and hot water in repair and good working order;
  • ensure that the property is fit for human habitation at the start of the contract and throughout its duration
    • in accordance with the Renting Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) (Wales) Regulations 2022 SI 2022 No. 6 (W. 4) (the FFHH Rules)
    • The FFHH Rules include a requirement for working mains-wired smoke alarms, carbon monoxide detectors and valid electrical safety inspection prior to occupation commencing.
    • see Fitness of homes for human habitation: guidance for landlords​
• The repairing provisions apply to all occupation contracts except fixed term standard contracts for a term of more than seven years.  This is consistent with the applicability of the standard provisions under section 11 of the Landlord & Tenant Act 1985 previously.

• Succession rights are conferred on certain family members and carers who occupy the dwelling as their principal home at the time of a sole contract-holder’s death.
• There are two potential rights of succession.
• Whilst the succession rights under the RHWA are fundamental terms which cannot be excluded, the landlord’s right to terminate a periodic standard contract using a s.173 no-fault notice remains. On that basis, the succession rights may not have a significant impact.

Termination

• Any notices to terminate a Standard Contract will be invalid if the landlord has failed to comply with certain statutory obligations contained in Schedule 9A, RHWA.  These obligations relate to issues such as Rent Smart Wales registration and licensing; provision of a written statement; deposit protection, compliance with FFHH Regulations; supply of EPC etc.
• Prescribed form notices must be used
• If the contract holder does not leave voluntarily, landlords must obtain a possession order to enforce any termination notice they have served.

• Contract holders must give at least four weeks’ notice to terminate (sections 168 and 169)

• Landlords are entitled to serve a section 173 ‘no-fault notice’ to terminate the contract (akin to a section 21 notice to terminate ASTs) on the following basis:
  • they must give the contract-holder at least six months’ notice.
  • Section 173 no-fault notices cannot be issued before the end of the period of six months from the occupation date.
  • In practice, this means that there will be a twelve-month minimum term for periodic standard contracts under the RHWA.
  • If the contract holder does not vacate, the landlord must issue possession proceedings to enforce the s173 notice within two months of its expiry date. It will become unenforceable thereafter and the landlord cannot serve a replacement s173 notice for another six months.
  • Landlords cannot issue a new s.173 notice within six months of withdrawing an earlier s.173 notice.

• Fixed term contracts will come to an end on the term date.
• If a new fixed term contract is not agreed at the end of the term, and the contract-holder remains in occupation:
• a periodic standard contract will automatically arise at the end of the fixed term under s.184;
• the termination provisions outlined above will then apply, save that the landlord will be entitled to serve a six-month s.173 ‘no fault’ notice immediately (under s.175) to bring the new periodic arrangement to an end.
• Landlords will generally be unable to serve a notice to terminate a fixed term contract during, or at the end of the fixed term. In most cases, in the absence of a valid break clause (see below), landlords will have to wait until a new periodic contract has arisen after the end of the fixed term before they can take steps to terminate the arrangement.

• Landlord’s break clauses cannot be used if the fixed term is for less than two years.
• If the fixed term is two years or more, landlords cannot serve a break notice until at least month 18 of the fixed term contract and will have to provide at least six months’ notice.
• Break clauses in favour of the contract holder can be included in all fixed term contracts, with a minimum four week notice period.

Landlords can issue possession proceedings to terminate on short notice (in most cases on one month prior written notice) in the case of:

• Breach of contract – by contract-holder
  • A discretionary ground, meaning the court will only order possession if it considers it reasonable to do so.

• Estate Management Grounds –
  • RHWA contains nine ‘estate management’ possession grounds.
  • They are discretionary grounds.
  • Suitable alternative accommodation must be available for the contract holder.
  • Landlord will be liable to pay the contract holder’s moving expenses.

• Rent Arrears –
  • Landlords can serve a 14-day written notice to terminate
  • Contract-holder must be “seriously in arrears” with their rent:
    • Broadly RHWA requires a minimum of two months’ unpaid rent if rental period is monthly, fortnightly or weekly; and
    • Three months unpaid rent if rent paid quarterly or annually.
  • If there are serious rent arrears still outstanding at the date of the court possession hearing this is a mandatory possession ground.

Service Occupiers & Assured Agricultural Occupiers

The impact of RHWA on service occupancies and assured agricultural occupancies is considered in our separate article:  Welsh residential tenancy reform: Agricultural workers & service occupiers.

Conclusion

The RHWA has been a long time coming.  After significant delays in the implementation date, including a last minute, 5-month deferral earlier this year to give landlords more time to prepare, it heralds a significant change to housing law in Wales.

From 1 December 2022, occupiers of residential dwellings in Wales will have significantly more protection than their English counterparts (for the time being at least), with the introduction of rules which effectively create a 12-month minimum term for ‘contract holders’. As noted above, this will include licensees who previously had precarious rights and protections. Full details of the English Renters’ Reform Bill are awaited at the time of writing.

The RHWA further highlights the strength and reach of devolved law-making powers in Wales.

Whilst the new legislation and terminology will no doubt take a while to bed in, the Senedd’s aim is to simplify matters for all parties and consolidate a previously diverse set of rules and regimes in one place. Hopefully this will prove to be the case in practice.

Further Information

The Senedd has a dedicated landing page containing links to various guidance notes, standard form documents, prescribed form notices and the relevant legislation: see Rent Homes: housing law is changing

For more information, please contact Josie Edwards.

Property development contains inherent risk. Property contracts are used between the parties to allocate this risk. These property developer contracts can be option agreements, conditional contracts or promotion agreements.

Where there is wider market uncertainty the parties, or their agents, should consider the legal tools to deal with risk allocation in the case of significant economic change. Such tools can include a freeze clause which can step into price provisions of a contract. This may postpone (i.e. freeze) a site purchase in market circumstances which means the contract would, otherwise, be terminated and the deal fail.

The risk for a developer is that they are likely to have invested a lot of resource in the planning and site investigation processes. It might be commercially fair and preserve the effort to have a freezer provision, so as to put back contract position for a period of time, in the hope the market bounces.

There can be a benefit for the landowner. An option lapsing is not necessarily a windfall. Standard options and promotion agreements are normally based on market valuation calculations, to synergise the interests. A landowner is unlikely to want to sell when the market is at rock bottom.

Some of the key points in drafting such clauses are:

When might such a clause be useful? 

This could include circumstances where a contract, typically a call option agreement, has been triggered or exercised in tranches, to extend a period to acquire further tranches. Or it could apply where planning permission has been obtained or is near, but the site would not be economically viable, if there has been a sharp correction.

What counts as a significant dip in the market?

A legal clause needs a clearly defined trigger. That means setting out what counts as a significant downtown in the property market. This could be based on a % change, perhaps against an agreed index of house process or a minimum price for the site. A further factor might also be if there is a significant increase in costs of building out this site (labour and energy costs being topical).

How long to freeze?

Two years is often suggested, based on where there have been roller coaster periods in the past and to allow the market to recover. However this depends on many factors and would also depend on site and regional specific considerations. A developer will need to consider the valuation aspects and a landowner will need to consider how long land is potentially tied up, without the value being delivered. Both parties will need to consider the overall picture and agree, bearing in mind that strategic land is often developed over long time periods in any event.

Long stop?

Most property development documents will have an agreed long stop. Consideration will be needed if a freeze period interacts with an agreed long stop period. So if a long stop date specified will be a soft date that is extended or a hard, absolute long stop even if the freeze is in effect.

Extension periods and price suspension?

A freeze period may also interact with other normal provisions in property contracts. Extra thought is needed. For instance, extension periods might already built in – for planning delays or judicial review challenges. Would this overlap? Certain contracts, such as promotion agreements, also have periods for marketing and taking a consented site to the market. There can be provisions for suspension of this marketing or bid process already. For instance, if there are competing sites or an oversupply of stock in that market segment. Could there be suspension for one reason and then a downturn freeze? This could be a potential ‘double whammy’ in terms of stretching timelines and this should be factored in.

One of the reasons I chose to apply to Michelmores was its culture. At the open day I attended, I was impressed by how approachable and friendly everyone was. I felt the Firm’s values on diversity and inclusion aligned with my own.

Since I have applied to the Firm, it has moved towards a hybrid model. The Firm is maintaining its culture by combining in-person interactions with hybrid working, which simultaneously supports diversity and inclusion initiatives. Attending the office is no longer based on being “present”, and instead can provide a purpose for human interaction, collaboration, and connection. This can help foster relationships with others.

Anchor days

Each team has a charter which sets out the days you are encouraged to come in. In my current employment seat, Anchor Day is Monday. We also have an in-person team meeting on this day. This has been beneficial as a trainee, as I have been able to connect with my colleagues in the office. Also, I know I will be able to work closely alongside my team on this day.

It is beneficial to learn by osmosis from more experienced colleagues. I recently attended a tribunal for an employment case, and it developed my adversarial skills by listening to an experienced barrister.

In some teams, there are capacity trackers detailing when people will be in for the upcoming week. As a trainee, you are welcome to come in every day if this suits you. It is useful to check in with your team to see when they will be around or to see if they need you to be in on certain days.

Inter-office travel

The Firm adopts a ‘one Firm approach’. This means that we are encouraged to work seamlessly across offices and departments, and we are encouraged to work in different locations to meet more of our colleagues in-person. My current supervisor is based in Bristol, and I have been given the opportunity to work there once a week. I have enjoyed meeting new colleagues and working in a different office.

Agile working

As a trainee, there are many benefits to working from home. As the working environment in which law firms operate has changed, it is necessary that you can work effectively from home as a trainee. This is something you will continue to do as a qualified solicitor. There are of course many benefits as discussed above, to attending the office. However, if you can work from home, you may save time on commuting, and you may benefit from being able to fit your work in around other commitments.

When working from home, it is important to stay in touch with your colleagues on MS Teams and to adapt to different people’s work styles. Some colleagues may prefer to speak on the phone, whilst others may prefer to send you a quick email. Be flexible with your form of communication. Remember it is important to ask questions throughout your training contract to ensure you make the most of your personal development.

ESG

The Environment

The Firm strives to continually improve its ESG goals: it’s working with Planet Mark to improve its sustainability and social outputs and has recently achieved certification. For businesses to be certified they need to pledge to measure and reduce their year-on-year carbon footprint by a minimum percentage. The Firm has considered the status of their ‘Scope 3’ emissions and is currently measuring their business travel (excluding air travel for the current certification),  waste, water and paper procurement.
Through reporting on its carbon and energy usage in its annual report and financial statements filed at Companies House, the Firm will be able to analyse and reduce its emissions.  Between the year ending 30 April 2020 and the year ending 30 April 2021 the Firm was able to achieve a 2 tCO2e reduction in their ‘Scope 1’ and ‘Scope 2’ emissions, which means the consumption of energy by our own assets and equipment, and the assets and equipment which we pay to use. This was as a result of a number of energy efficiency measures taken by the Firm, including installation of LED lighting, timers and sensors for lighting and applying heat reflective film to windows. In addition to these steps, the Firm has also transitioned to paperless invoicing, adopted a ‘zero to landfill’ waste disposal contract, as well as green energy contracts at the majority of our offices, and has replaced the on-site van with an electric vehicle.  Notably, Michelmores moved its London office to 100 Liverpool Street, a building nominated this year by the Royal Institute of British Architects for the Stirling Prize for its green credentials.

Since having begun working with Planet Mark, the Firm has also been able to improve methods of data collection, and will use the data from the year ending 30 April 2022 as a baseline for future reduction targets.

Social

• Diversity and Inclusion

The Firm adopts a multitude of diversity and inclusion initiatives. Recently the Firm has hosted an online seminar celebrating PRIDE and International Women’s Day. These events are easily accessible on MS Teams, and they are recorded. This means they can be watched at another time, if you do not have the capacity to attend them. Last week, the Firm held its National Inclusion Week which sought to celebrate inclusion in the workplace and our everyday lives.

• Access to the Legal Profession

The Firm partners with The Sutton Trust as part of their Pathways to Law programme. This aims to widen access to the legal profession by providing opportunities for students from less advantaged backgrounds to experience working in a law firm. The Firm has been involved with this for several years and offers work experience to students in Exeter and more recently, Bristol.

There are also opportunities for support staff to become apprentices and the Firm sponsors people who would like to qualify through Cilex.

Next year, the Firm will offer school leavers’ the opportunity to apply for a solicitor apprenticeship or graduate apprenticeship – an alternative path to qualification which some find better suits their personal needs.

Recently, the Firm has partnered with VisionPath to create our Momentum programme which involves partnering with three local schools. The programme aims to increase social mobility and access to the workplace by enabling employees to run career skill workshops and mentoring.

The Firm adopts a ‘recruit to retain’ policy. As a trainee, you will be given a good level of responsibility and coaching as the Firm develops you through your career. This year 100% of trainees accepted a NQ role at the Firm (the average rate is 97%). We are proud that some of our partners started as trainees at the Firm and have progressed to become great role models and leaders in the organisation. We are keen to support our colleagues, encourage their progression and recognise their successes.

Client work

The Firm’s values are linked to the work we take on. For example, we have undertaken work for the country’s first habitat bank for biodiversity net gain and assisted on a joint venture between TESCO and The WWF exploring the use of insect protein as animal feed. MAINstream and MiVentures, our Firm initiatives also support start-up and disruptor companies.

• Events

Recently the Firm hosted its annual Charity Run for the Charlie Waller Trust. The Firm encourages trainees to attend networking events and socials. For example, trainees are encouraged to assist with events such as MAINstream, the angel investment network. As part of the business department, I recently attended the away day which was held at the Kenton Park Estate in Exeter. This enabled me to catch up with and meet new colleagues in an informal way. We also had the trainee social during the summer. This was a great opportunity to meet incoming trainees and I have volunteered to assist with the trainee Christmas social.

•  Policies

The Firm has opened the conversation on menopause and is working in partnership with Henpicked and Menopause Friendly to develop new policies. There will be Menopause Champions to offer support and guidance to colleagues or those interested in developing their knowledge of menopause. We held a Firm-wide webinar about this and information on how to support others.

The Firm offers enhanced maternity and paternity policies to ensure we are supporting colleagues as best we can when they are going through challenging times such as pregnancy loss and premature birth. We have partnered with Employer with Heart to ensure we are providing the best support possible to colleagues affected by premature birth. We also have other policies around adoption leave, shared parental leave, domestic abuse and fertility leave.

As a trainee, you can be involved with ESG, diversity and inclusion, and internal and external events. If there is a club you would like to be involved with that does not already exist, you can request that a new one is set up. The change of direction of agile working at the Firm means the culture is being maintained in newly accessible ways.

Cast your minds back to March 2020. Of course, this date will be etched into all of our minds forever more as the start point of the pandemic and the introduction of the first (of many) lockdowns and restrictions. Social interaction of any kind under the ‘rules’ was significantly limited.  One of the few benefits of this was that employers were granted a hiatus from having to conduct an in-person right to work process and were permitted to undertake right to work checks via a video call, with copy documents in place of originals.

Sadly, the government has announced that this flexible way of conducting checks will come to an end on 30 September 2022. It is not entirely clear why this decision has been taken, given the remote checks seemed to be working well for both employers and employees alike.  However, we are where we are, so here is everything you need to know about the upcoming changes.

Before jumping into the changes, what would a legal article be without a quick lecture on the subject matter. Having a robust right to work check process in place is crucial for every UK business. Employers can face civil penalties of up to £20,000 if they are found to be employing people who do not have the right to work in the UK. Further, if the employer knows, or ought to have known, that the employee in question does not have the right to work, they can also face criminal sanctions in addition to the fine.

From 1 October 2022, employers will only be able to use one of three methods of checking an individual’s right to work. That is an online check, the traditional manual check or by using an Identity Service Provider (IDSP).

Online check

This method should be used where the employee holds a Biometric Residence Card, Biometric Residence Permit or a Frontier Worker Permit. The position here is unchanged following the most recent right to work update on 6 April 2022, so employers should (hopefully) be familiar with the online method.

In order to complete this check, employers need to simply request a share code from the individual and then follow the steps on the Gov.uk website to complete the checks online. A careful review should be conducted to ensure the details presented match up with the individual to whom the check relates, then a copy of the result should be saved (digital copy is fine) to confirm the check has been completed.

The Employer’s Checking Service

This can be used in a number of circumstances to establish a statutory excuse, where the individual does not have the documents required to perform the online check. These may include where:

• The employee has a document to confirm they have applied via the EU Settlement Scheme and are awaiting a decision, e.g. Certificate of Application, or an email/letter of acknowledgement;
• The employee has claimed asylum and holds an Application Registration Card;
• The employee has an outstanding application and is awaiting a decision – provided the application was submitted before the expiration of their previous visa;
• The employee has an outstanding appeal or administrative review; or
• The employee is a long-term UK resident, who arrived in the UK before 1988.

The Manual Check

Very much a return to the status quo with no updates to report. Full guidance on conducting the manual checks can be found here, but the principle steps are:

• Meet the individual in-person;
• Check the original (copies will no longer be permitted) documents; and
• Retain a copy of these documents.

In order to obtain a statutory excuse, employers should ensure they only accept documents from Lists A&B of the Home Office guidance as proof of the person’s right to work in the UK.

Lastly… Identification Document Validation Technology

This was initially introduced as part of the April 2022 changes and can be used for anyone who is not eligible for online checks, so by and large this will be UK and Irish passport holders. More detailed information can be found here. In essence, this is a paid for third party service, which must be Home Office approved, that will conduct checks remotely.

It is unclear to date how this has landed with UK employers. Broadly speaking, this may be beneficial for businesses where a large portion of their workforce works remotely making in-person checks difficult and burdensome. It is unlikely to be particularly appealing to small or medium businesses who have the infrastructure to conduct manual checks, due to the additional cost.

Hopefully you should now be up to speed on the upcoming changes. It is certainly disappointing that, seeing as so many aspects of our work and personal lives have now been digitised and altered to suit a more remote and agile setting following the pandemic, the government has reverted to the traditional right to work check model (with very little warning), but this is the decision and now we must all follow suit.

If you have any specific questions or concerns, please do get in touch with the Immigration team to discuss further.

The competition for training contracts is rife, with the number of applicants far exceeding the number of vacancies at most firms. It is therefore essential that applicants stand out by differentiating themselves from their competition. A great way to do this is through work experience – I worked as a paralegal prior to obtaining and subsequently starting my training contract with Michelmores. Whilst obtaining paralegal experience is not a prerequisite for securing a training contract, and some applicants may successfully obtain a training contract during their studies, it can be beneficial for the following reasons:

1. Standing out: Whilst strong academics are a requirement for most firms, having prior work experience enables you to stand out from other applicants by drawing on personal experiences when answering questions throughout the recruitment process. Using real-life workplace examples as opposed to hypothetical scenarios will take your answers to the next level as you will be able to demonstrate the development and application of key skills such as commercial awareness, communication and organisation. Applying the popular STAR method: Situation, Task, Action and Result – will ensure that an answer is fully developed and meets the assessment criteria, thus enhancing your chances of success.
2. A way in: Many law firms like to recruit trainees internally from their paralegal pool. A paralegal role can therefore be a stepping stone to obtaining a training contract, which is especially useful if you are struggling with applications. The paralegal experience enables you to demonstrate your abilities, build relationships and create a positive reputation within the firm, which, whilst not applicable to all firms, can be helpful if the firm has an internal application process for training contracts. This has been the case here at Michelmores as we have had several paralegals qualify with the firm via various routes including the traditional training contract.
3. Qualifying work experience (“QWE”): Having prior work experience may reduce a trainee’s period of recognised training by up to six months, which means a trainee could qualify after just 18 months of training. However, with the new SQE route, it is now possible to use two years’ paralegal experience towards satisfying the QWE requirement. This could greatly accelerate the qualification process for some.
4. Confirming that a legal career is for you: A paralegal role is also beneficial if you are unsure whether a career within the legal profession is for you. I worked as a paralegal prior to and during the LPC, which allowed me to gain an invaluable insight into the working life of a solicitor and the culture and working practices of a law firm, which ultimately reassured me that I wanted to pursue a career in law.

Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) delivery will become mandatory for the majority of housebuilders and developers in November 2023, and a growing number of local authorities are already imposing it as a planning requirement.

Please see two articles we recently published on this topic below:

• Overview of the basics: Biodiversity Net Gain: the basics | Michelmores
• Steps developers can take before November 2023:  Biodiversity Net Gain : An update for developers | Michelmores

Achieving BNG – the mitigation hierarchy

Developers will be required to demonstrate that they will deliver a minimum 10% net gain from the pre-development bio-diversity value of new developments.

To achieve net gain in a way that is consistent with the mitigation hierarchy, developers will be required to follow these steps in order:

1. aim to avoid or reduce biodiversity impacts through site selection and layout

2. enhance and restore biodiversity on-site

3. create or enhance off-site habitats, either on their own land or by purchasing biodiversity units on the market, and

4. as a last resort to prevent undue delays, purchase statutory biodiversity credits from the UK Government where on-site and off-site options are not available.

In practice, delivery of BNG on-site may not be viable or attractive and developers may need to turn to the off-site options. These are essentially the developer buying off-site land to deliver BNG itself, or securing an agreement or conservation covenant from a third party who will then deliver off-site BNG, or buying biodiversity units on the newly emerging market, for example, from a habitat bank.

Future proofing acquisition contracts, options and promotion agreements

These delivery requirements will need to be reflected in land acquisition agreements. Some examples of the provisions that we expect to see built into acquisition contracts, options and promotion agreements to address BNG requirements are:

• Clauses which set out a route map of options for satisfying BNG requirements, for example, by the landowner agreeing to make nearby land available under a conservation covenant at low cost on agreed terms.
• Clauses which provide checks and balances and address the respective parties interests, for example, landowners may want to incentivise developers to go down the off-site route despite the attendant ongoing management obligations and costs, whereas developers may prefer purchasing biodiversity units which may be more costly but will be a one-off payment.
• Price calculations which expressly allow for the deduction from the price of BNG acquisition costs, potentially subject to approval of the costs by the landowner acting reasonably. Landowners will want to incentivise developers to minimise these costs and therefore BNG cost-sharing provisions may emerge.
• Contracts which are conditional not only on the grant of planning permission but potentially on the securing of off-site BNG land where relevant. A planning permission will only become implementable when the BNG plan has been approved by the LPA, and this means that the developer will want to have secured any necessary third party interests before buying a development site.
• Long stop provisions which recognise that additional time may be needed to secure not only the planning permission but also any third party land interest that is required for BNG. Potentially we may see extensions of time which are triggered by ongoing BNG negotiations.
• Flexibility in requirements for a minimum number of units to be achieved, since developers will be concerned that on-site BNG may reduce the number of units that can be built. A scheme which falls below a specific number of units or value may not however be viable to the seller.
• Overage clauses are being agreed upon more widely to address landowner’s concerns over the developer getting a “second bite of the cherry” when the 30 year biodiversity maintenance period has expired, with provision for future enhancements in value to be shared.

The involvement of any third party land outside the development site may cause delay and uncertainty and we are already seeing the structure of transactions changing to address these risks.

A lot of landowners are used to working with their neighbours. In the rural context in particular, neighbours are often willing to recognise their land is interdependent with, not independent from, the wider landscape. Hence it was interesting to see a form of words being by the Chancery Lane Project suggested for collaboration agreements on environmental schemes. See link here:

Heads of Terms for Landowner Collaboration on Environmental Schemes | The Chancery Lane Project;

The notes with the draft wording state:

“Privately-funded projects which seek to provide a means for businesses to offset greenhouse gas emissions are becoming more prevalent, but can be limited in their scope and ambition by a fragmented ownership structure. This drafting sets out a framework by which multiple landowners can collaborate in putting forward and utilising their land for public and private environmental schemes and projects.”

Collaboration agreements are fairly common in real estate transactions. Most often they are used between groups of owners bringing forward housing developments. However that does not have to be the only use of this type of legal tool. The big benefit of collaboration agreements is to streamline the interactions between the owners so as to maximise the benefits overall. It is interesting to see examples of how that might work in sustainable and environmental schemes.

Some of the key take aways are:

Drafting objectives: It is also important to define the goal. The notes to the draft wording suggested both with words and hard data, to set out the environmental benefits of the proposed. This could be the potential outcomes in a local area or landscape and, longer term, whole ecosystem recovery at scale. The examples noted are climate change mitigation and the promotion of carbon sinks, as well as biodiversity and nature based solutions.

It also makes sense to set out what potential schemes the landowners are aiming to come under. Potential schemes for landowners include: the Biodiversity Gain Site Register (created by the Environment Act 2021); the new ELM Scheme (including the Sustainable Farming Incentive, Local Nature Recovery and Landscape Recovery schemes), the Countryside Stewardship Scheme (until replaced by ELM); and The Woodland Carbon Guarantee (among others, as they are brought forward).

Time scales: These steps can require long term commitment. It was interesting to see minimum and maximum durations as a key point to agreed. Contractual certainty and long stop dates are important parts of drafting any property agreement.

Agreed responsibilities: It can be important to agree not only on what is done on the land but what will not be done. It was interesting to see a mutual agreement to restrict the land use, in the suggested wording and a suggested list of prohibited activities. The legal position with enforcing this is something that requires careful consideration,

Dealing with the land: The transmission of land is something to think about and the legal means for securing the obligations. This is especially over the longer term. The draft wording talks about not disposing of land during the period of a scheme except to a person who promises (via a deed of covenant) to comply with the terms of the collaboration agreement. The notes to the suggested wording had an interesting example, that the desired environmental impact could be lost if sequestered carbon becomes re-emitted once land is used for agriculture again. It might be worth thinking if there should be some first refusal or pre-emption procedure, in case plans change.

Division of profits: It is always worth thinking about the divvy up. It is interesting to see the comments and wording proposed, which is aimed at how to share the receipts of the scheme and coming up with an agreed division. This may be on a pro rata basis but there is the potential for it to be more site specific.  For example, what if one party controls land essential to the core delivery of the scheme? It might also be worth thinking about a third party or expert determination process in the legal wording.  This would be in case of disagreement or dispute, to work out a fair return.

Division of liabilities: It can avoid future dispute risk to set up a framework for liabilities. This could be if one party does something which is in breach of the agreement or a proposed scheme/grant regime. So, what if one ruins it for the others? There could also be loss or damage flowing from the activities undertaken and how the risk of this is allocated can be considered and specified in the legal drafting.

Ongoing funding and management: It will reduce friction and is normal in collaboration contracts to set out how decision will be taken. This can cover how costs are occurred and the discussion before they are taken. A mechanism to deal with this and drafting to cover how potential disagreements can be dealt with are common in dispute resolution clauses in collaboration contracts. This is a sensible and easy import into a new context.

Every year, law firms receive hundreds if not thousands of applications for a handful of vacation schemes and training contract opportunities. This means, getting your initial application right is incredibly important. Here are some of my top tips to help strengthen your application.

Step 1 – Pick your firms

Chances are you are balancing your applications with studies, a career or both. Applying to a large number of firms can severely reduce your time to prepare each application and make it unique by tailoring it to their specific requirements. Consider what you are looking for from your future career and use this to pick a manageable number of firms to apply to. For example, what areas of law do you want to encounter during your training contract? Do you want to be part of a large or small trainee intake? What organisational culture and values are important to you?

Step 2 – Research

Next you need to research these firms in more depth to show the recruitment teams why you want to work for their firm. Each firm’s website is a fantastic place to start. Try and sign up for insight days or virtual workshops to gain exposure to the firm, but also look at the specific Training Contract pages which will provide the skills you should highlight in your application.

When speaking to Georgie Lewis in our recruitment team, she emphasised you should

“make sure you dedicate enough time to looking at who they are, what they do, their position within the market, values and culture as a starting point.”

Step 3 – Answering the written application questions

• Keep your responses clear and concise. When advising clients in the future you will need to ensure your advice is easy to understand, so it is important to show these communication skills in your responses.
• Link your responses to the firm and their work. For example, when asked about a recent news article you have read explain why this is relevant to the firm.
• Let your personality shine. Law firms are not looking to recruit robots, the clients want their advice to come from people who they can relate to and building relationships internally and externally is absolutely key.

Step 4 – Final checks

It can be tempting after your hard work to finish the application and press submit to move on to the next one. Take that extra time to proofread, check for spelling mistakes, making sure you have spelt the organisation’s name correctly and are using the right firm name. These small mistakes are common causes of applications being unsuccessful. Finally, ask a friend or family member to read it in case anything has been missed. Remember this is the only thing a recruiter has to base their decision on, so make sure it shows your true capability before submitting.

If you would like to know more about life as a trainee at Michelmores, please do get in touch.

The countdown to mandatory BNG delivery has begun, what do developers need to be doing to prepare for this milestone?

Biodiversity Net Gain (or ‘BNG’) found its way into legislation nearly a year ago. Its ‘transitional’ arrangements will close in November 2023, meaning thereafter BNG delivery will become a mandatory requirement for the vast majority of housebuilders and developers.

For an overview of the basics of BNG please consult our earlier publication:

Biodiversity Net Gain: the basics

What is the transition period and when does it end?

The Environment Act 2021 allowed for a ‘transition period’ to afford Local Planning Authorities an opportunity to gear up towards the mandatory requirement for BNG to be demonstrated and delivered through the planning system. In short, during the transition period LPAs are not required to impose BNG on developments unless they want to. Some LPAs have already rolled out BNG delivery on certain developments but the remainder will have to do so by law when the transition period comes to an end in November 2023 (we don’t currently know the precise date on which the transition period will come to an end).

All developers and housebuilders will need to ensure they have a firm grasp of the BNG requirements and delivery methods well ahead of the November 2023 deadline. Those who are not properly prepared will risk facing even greater delays in the planning system, unexpected costs affecting viability and potentially ongoing liabilities reaching far beyond sales and ‘site exit’ for which they have not accounted.

What steps should developers be taking before November 2023?

Over the next 12 months developers should be doing what they can to familiarise themselves with the BNG regime in the context of their business operations. Some practical steps to take would include:-

1. Understanding the Biodiversity Matrix prepared by Natural England. This provides the formula for calculating existing and required levels of biodiversity and will be the basis on which BNG requirements for individual developments are assessed.

2. Reviewing the Biodiversity Matrix against existing ‘pipeline’ sites and/or prospective sites where it is anticipated that a planning application will be submitted post-November 2023. This will offer some insight into what a 10% ‘net gain’ will look like on proposed development projects. Developers should also consider whether these sites fall within the administrative boundaries of an LPA that is already imposing BNG (because many will be) and if so what the consequences will be for their development proposals and viability. Finally, Developers should re-assess their contractual obligations to maximise value in light of the cost implications of on-site vs. off-site BNG options (with the latter, particularly BNG units, likely to be more expensive).

3. Familiarise themselves with existing LPA literature and guidance on BNG delivery, including examples of BNG planning conditions and S.106 obligations. Examples of these include:-

• The Dorset Biodiversity Appraisal Protocol
• Cornwall planning for Biodiversity Guide 
• Devon Planning Guidance for Biodiversity Compensation and Net Gain

4. Planning ahead by considering new design strategies aimed at maximising on-site delivery opportunities through the creation of habitats which can be incorporated into developments. Bat or bird boxes and hedgehog highways will not suffice because the Biodiversity Metric takes a habitat-based approach. So developers will need to think creatively about how they can, for example, convert public open space into a BNG vehicle – possibly by establishing meadows, using indigenous hedges rather than boundary fencing and/or creating wetlands within the proximity of attenuation facilities. Another key feature of the BNG regime is that the gain and associated management must be in place for 30 years. Developers need to be thinking about what changes they will need to make to their estate management services if their management companies will now be required to maintain specially created ecological habitats long after sales have completed.

5. Reviewing and understanding the current range of ‘off-site’ delivery measures available. These could include delivering BNG on neighbouring land, purchasing non-statutory BNG units created through networks of habitat banks and purchasing statutory biodiversity credits. We have also previously considered the use of conservation covenants to achieve BNG in: Conservation covenants: The basics  and Conservation covenants: What is a ‘Responsible Body’?

Only 37% of the UK’s adult population has brought or thought about buying life insurance. A recent study conducted by MoneySuperMarket suggested homeowners with dependents were not taking out life insurance due to ‘widespread myths’ about cover, including concerns over it being too expensive and insurers not paying out. In addition, only 15% of people surveyed by a recent EY study considered life or health insurance as a top three priority to protect financial wellbeing, compared with 77% prioritising savings.

LifeSearch is the UK’s most awarded and biggest life insurance adviser and specialists in helping families and businesses get the right protection since 1998. They provide support and guidance to our clients and their businesses on life protection, insurance, critical illness cover, share-holder protection, keyman and income protection. In our latest article for the View, we speak to Tom Baigrie, Chair of LifeSearch on the importance of life protection and his 40-year experience in protecting families.

What led you to work at LifeSearch and what does your role entail?

I started life in England aged 20 and the only job I could get was as a self-employed commission only life insurance salesman. I turned that start into a wealth management business, Baigrie Davies, and eventually sold it to Standard Life back in 2016. As a spelling pedant, I’m glad I left before they rebranded to Abrdn! Back in 1998 though, I grew to feel that consumers would prefer to buy their simpler financial products, like life and disability insurance over the phone, from people who were specialists, who really knew their stuff, not financial advisers who did a bit of protection. So, I set up LifeSearch to give them that chance.

Why should people have life insurance and why is it so important?

It’s to answer the question, “How would your family, or business, cope financially were you to die?” If you can answer that question with a clear conscience great. But if you have dependents and can’t answer that question then you need life cover. But in Britain, that generic is used to cover three types of policy: life insurance, income protection insurance and critical illness insurance. I’ll leave out the latter for now, but the middle one is a form of disability insurance, and the question relevant to almost every worker is, “how would you cope if you were disabled and couldn’t earn a living?”.

Some employers have ‘Group Income Protection’ policies, but in today’s gig and SME dominated workplace it is shocking how few people, who do insure their possessions, do not insure the earnings engine that pays for everything. It doesn’t help that our market is very bad at explaining that need to consumers, but still, it should be obvious! LifeSearch arranges more individual income protection policies than any other firm, and many group schemes too. If you aren’t retired, super-rich, or too poor to care, you need to get income protection. It’s available for carers and home-makers as well as paid workers, and the policies we arrange pay out no matter what causes the disability, be it illness, accident or mental health, which is one of the most common reasons for successful claims.

How can someone ensure they have the right life insurance in place for them and their family? How does LifeSearch help?

You can do the applied maths yourself, using, say, the age of your youngest child and their likely point of future financial independence, multiplying the income the family relies on by, say, 10 or 20 times, and adding any debt, but there is a bit more to it than that and it costs no more and is far safer to speak to an adviser used to working out the sensible questions to ask to lead you to the right answer. Of course if you know exactly what you need and are in good health and time is what matters most, then a price comparison website will do. Moneysupermarket and Compare the Market will give you prices and the ability to deal there and then, but also the opportunity to speak to a LifeSearch adviser while you make up your mind. Advice costs nothing extra and gets you great protection from the financial ombudsman should something go wrong at the claims stage say. We recently helped a customer who was originally quoted an extortionate amount for a policy based on a rating at the application stage due to a mention of ‘breathlessness’ combined with being an ex-smoker. When they approached us we realised that this was producing an unnecessary rating to the customer, we investigated it further, getting extra information from the customer and raising it with underwriters directly, challenging the original decision. This led to the family being protected and with standard terms.

What has been your career highlight to date?

Well the immigrant story is that I came to the UK aged 20 after school and military conscription in South Africa and could only get a job advising on life insurance on a commission only basis. And 41 years later, my business is the UK’s largest protection adviser by quite a long way. After working in insurance for so many years and after selling Baigrie Davies, in 2016, I knew my passion was for protection, not making rich people richer, so I spun off LifeSearch and went on from there. There have been many highlights, but the one I’m most proud of is coming third in the 2019 Sunday Times Top 100 places to work for in Britain. The highest ever ranking for a first-time competitor. Passing our millionth family protected milestone a few years ago left me feeling I had done some good in the world too.

What is the Protection Distributors Group (PDG) and what do you do for the group?

I helped found the PDG with the sole purpose of improving what the protection market does for its customers. Today the board comprises leaders from 12 firms, from St James Place to LifeSearch to several near enough one-man bands. Our membership now accounts for c60% of all protection policies sold with advice. We have to-date signed up most insurers to a ‘Claims Charter’ of benchmark levels of service when handling a claim, and separately got them to all agree to pay out for funeral costs when probate has not yet been granted, amongst other improvements to customer service. Currently, we are leading a campaign to see insurers act as gatekeepers to our market, by mystery shopping distributors with very high early policy cancellation rates. Many of the ‘unknown’ brands advertising on Google or across social media cause considerable consumer detriment and the FCA seems unable to act on the issue. We see it as our market’s duty to protect its customers and indeed its reputation. Insurers, who after all fund all distribution, including the rogue elements, need to step up and monitor what’s been said in their name and clean it up.

What’s next for LifeSearch, what do you want to achieve in the next five years?

After a long run of rapid growth before and through the pandemic, this year is one of regrouping for our next big step: becoming a consumer brand recognised for what we are, the best at what we do in personal and business protection. Our business team is our fastest growing with many BIBA, ICEAW and Law Society members signposting their customers to us for protection help. Along the way, I decided I need new energy and skills and so recruited Debbie Kennedy to replace me as CEO last year, following her impressive success as MD of LV’s Life and Pensions division, and before that helping lead the transformation of Royal London that saw it rise from doing almost no business to being one of the UKs biggest life insurers. Our most significant recent appointment was by Which?, the consumer group who now advocates all their customers with protection queries to trust LifeSearch to help them.

What could be done to raise awareness of the importance of life insurance?

Most people have at least a working knowledge of what Life Insurance might do. But as to their need for it, ever fewer fear the rare catastrophe that is death during working age. And that’s doubly true of income protection which is claimed some six times more often. Awareness campaigns could change this, but there’s no doubt that the biggest gain would be if professionals advising business and personal clients on their tax and financial affairs, property purchase, mortgage and debt transactions highlighted the need for protection for those whose financial risks and responsibilities they are helping increase. We call it signposting clients to protection, and LifeSearch’s key business model is to form relationships with those who ordinary people rely on for any and all forms of financial advice, so that, through a simple referral, they can help with protection too. Some firms have turned it into an entirely new revenue and profit stream. It’s great to earn good money doing something good for your customer.

What benefits do you see in the reform of the life insurance industry?

Our market has been pretty stagnant, perhaps except for an 18 month blip upwards during the pandemic. But consumers need us as much as ever.  If we are to resume growth we must first ensure that all consumers who approach us get a fair deal. At the moment a growing number don’t. Those that self-serve online do, as do those who take advice. Both routes do what they say they will. But the fastest growing route is a thing called ‘non-advised telesales’, or more euphemistically ‘guidance’ delivered over the phone’. In practice it is a highly persuasive and profitable hard sell, often delivered in a blizzard of unsolicited calls, and that puts the sale way ahead of the customer’s need and makes that viable by denying consumers the protection of the ombudsman, without explaining that. We need to reform the worst behaviours of such distributors or face ever declining consumer trust.

How does Michelmores help you to achieve your business goals?  

I first used Michelmores when selling Baigrie Davies to the FTSE30 giant Standard Life. I was impressed by the resilience and determination they showed in the face of the serried ranks of lawyers and accountants sent in to grind us down. Since then most of the work has been contractual, which means again negotiating with some of Britain’s biggest brands. For all the big ticket things, we find Edwin Richards and his supporting teams, as well as those experts he brings on to help us with occasional oddities like patent law, to be excellent and personable and effective.

The National Federation of Builders (NFB) has reiterated recently its call upon the government to support small and medium size builders and developers ahead of forthcoming Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) requirements.

In response to government consultation in April, the NFB called for a cost effective process to calculate BNG requirements on smaller sites of less than 50 units. Other concerns have surrounded issues like how the provision of BNG will impact infrastructure schemes such as cables and pipelines, sites for phased development as well as compulsory purchase of land.

NFB members were concerned that the BNG could add materially to the costs, delays and consenting risks of undertaking property development. Requests were made for government clarification of qualifying measures, both onsite and offsite to count towards improving BNG performance. NFB members are worried about how offsite solutions will work in particular. Issues include how BNG measures will impact on the development process and how much they will cost. As a consequence, NFB has questioned whether more could be done to broaden qualifying onsite measures.

The NFB is hoping for a sympathetic response from Liz Truss’ new government following her previously stated plans to review nutrient neutrality guidance in a bid to cut red tape. The BNG regime is currently due to take effect in November 2023. Between now and then many planning authorities have started to develop their understanding, and building up their skills and resources to be able to implement the new requirements. Many authorities are critically short in these areas. Private sector planning consultants and environmental consultants will be needing to do the same in kind. Hopefully, as the implementation date draws nearer, more information and local planning guidance will be made available to address and assuage the concerns outlined by the NFB members.

The development sector is hoping for a measured approach to implementation, avoiding any hiatus to schemes and projects which are already in the pipeline and a repeat of the experience recently seen with aspects of nutrient neutrality.

By the time these words reach the website, my trainee cohort will have moved into our second year, and a new set of trainees will be preparing for their first week at Michelmores. It’s been a fast year for me, and I remember well the excitement that the 2022 cohort must be feeling. Over the summer, I was in touch with our future trainees—those starting in September, and others joining after their studies—to ask whether they had any remaining questions about how to prepare for their training, and what to expect when it starts.

I’ve collected a few of their questions below.

The Solicitors Qualifying Exam (SQE)

• Where should I complete the SQE?

For applicants who have not yet completed the SQE, Michelmores prefers that you enrol at the University of Law. If, however, you completed your SQE at another institution, or are enrolled elsewhere when you apply, this won’t prevent you receiving an offer.

• Will Michelmores put me in touch with other future trainees at my institution?

While Michelmores won’t ordinarily put future trainees in contact when they begin their studies, present and future trainees meet frequently at Firm socials, and are kept in the loop through a ‘buddy scheme’.

• How do I pay for the SQE?

This one’s nice and simple. If you receive an offer prior to your SQE, Michelmores will fund it, and provide a bursary to support you while you study. If the offer comes after your exams, Michelmores will reimburse you for the fees.

Seat Rotation

• How likely am I to be allocated my first seat preference and location?

The Firm tries very hard to give each trainee their first choice, but this isn’t always possible. It depends on the preferences of other trainees and business needs. The main thing to remember if you’re worried about not getting your top seat is to be consistent. If you have a particular path in mind, make it known. If there are seats you definitely want to take but perhaps not first or second, rank them accordingly but give a full explanation of your reasoning, and emphasise what your ‘priority seats’ are from day one.

It’s also worth remembering that even if you are not sat in a particular team, you are more than welcome (and encouraged) to attend their knowledge sessions and events, where possible.

Relocation

• Are trainees able to train in Bristol or London for one or more seats?

Trainees have the opportunity to train in London for one six-month seat, and there is no limit to the number of seats you can apply for in Bristol. That said, you’re choosing practice areas or teams, rather than offices, so where you end up will depend on the sort of work you want to be involved in.

For example, the Commercial Litigation team is spread across the offices, and trainees in the team can expect to support fee earners in multiple locations. Still, I asked to be placed in the London team because it has a number of IP specialists – an area I have an interest in. Many teams operate like this, so it’s worth asking questions early on to get a sense of the work being done, who is conducting it, and where their teams are based.

On a more general note, I’d say it’s a good idea to complete a seat in another office, and most trainees do. It builds your profile in the Firm and broadens your training experience.

• Does Michelmores help with relocation if we undertake a seat in the London office?

In short, yes. The Firm has a flat available for trainee secondments. It is very close to the office, and most expenses are covered.

• Is it possible to complete a seat in a department based elsewhere, without relocating to that office?

It will be clear when you apply to join a team where that team is based, and there is a general preference that you work from that office – but this is not a hard rule. If you have any doubts about whether you will be expected to relocate, or have any preferences about this, I’d encourage you to make these clear when choosing your seats. The people who make the decisions on seat rotation are keen to understand your rationale, and will be happy to discuss your options.

Culture

• What sort of work/life balance can I expect as a trainee?

As you’ll expect, the amount of time you spend at your desk is likely to depend on the seat that you’re in, the time of the year, whether there are court deadlines or completions on the horizon, and your individual work-style. Still, Michelmores trainees consistently report their satisfaction with their work-life balance.

Of course, there are occasional peaks and troughs in most practice areas, and good time management is necessary to avoid last-minute sprints for a deadline, but it is generally true that early starts and late nights will not be necessary to meet your responsibilities. The trainee testimonials on Glassdoor, Lex 100, Chambers Student and Legal Cheek speak for themselves.

• Will I be working across offices (for fee-earners based elsewhere)?

Quite probably. As explained above, larger teams are often spread across the offices, and the type of work completed in each office can differ according to the interests and specialisms of the senior lawyers. Though you should bear this in mind come seat selection, you can expect to support fee earners across the team wherever you’re based.

This doesn’t necessarily mean that you’ll need to travel between the offices for work, especially since the transition to agile working (see below). That being said, Michelmores recognises that it is desirable (particularly for junior fee earners) to meet in person, at work and socially. This means that there are fairly frequent opportunities for interoffice travel, the most common examples being department meetings; marketing events; socials; and the occasional conference.

• How often do Michelmores trainees work in the office and from home?

Following a successful pilot last year, the Firm voted by a large majority to adopt agile working, which allows each team to decide for itself what expectations to set for home and office working. For most teams, this means two or three days a week in the office, with an anchor day to ensure that the whole team meets once a week. As a trainee, you should aim to be in the office more frequently than this, to learn from those around you and build relationships with your team.

Final Preparations

• What will my first few weeks at Michelmores look like?

In your first few days, you’ll have the pleasure of meeting Phil Willis, who provides excellent training on the core apps and systems that you’ll use every day. There will be meetings with the department heads, and you’ll get to know the rest of your cohort (which is especially important – here’s why).

Before joining your teams you’ll also sit the core modules of your Professional Skills Course. Thankfully, these are short, relatively informal, and getting them out of the way early means you won’t be distracted when you start your first seat.

• How can I prepare in advance?

Rest up; read in.

You’ve probably come straight from your studies, and you’re soon to begin your training. If you have some time in between, I suggest you take it. Rest up and be ready to start with your batteries charged.

Once you’re in, and completing your induction, you might reach out to your supervisor. They may have some questions for you, and can (if you ask) direct you to something to read for a head-start on the seat.