Life as a RWK Goodman trainee – the extra bits

It’s not all hard work…

When I joined RWK Goodman, I was keen to get involved in as much as I could. Not only because I enjoy being busy and learning about new things, but because it is a great way to meet people and for others in the firm to get to know you.

RWK Goodman has a number of committees to get involved in so whether you were a born socialite (Social committee) or passionate about saving the planet (Green group) there is a committee for you.

Charities committee
Every two years employees at RWK Goodman are given the opportunity to vote for a charity of choice for each main office - Bath, Oxford and Swindon. We then dedicate two years to raising as much money as possible for each one through a number of initiatives. At the moment our three chosen charities are Dorothy House, Prospect Hospice and Yellow Submarine and some of the fundraising we have done this year have included bake sales, the Bath Half Marathon and an epic cycle ride to Paris.

But you don’t have to be on the Charities committee to get involved in charity work. I have signed up for a number of charity challenges since being at the firm including the Three Peaks Challenge! RWK Goodman also gives staff two volunteer days a year which you can use to volunteer for any charity you choose.

Green group
RWK Goodman is committed to minimising any negative impact on the local and global environments. RWK Goodman’s carbon footprint shows that our CO2 emissions compare favourably to many other law firms but there is still a lot of work to be done. The firm offers the cycle to work scheme and has installed water-pipe boilers rather than kettles to save C02 emissions. The Green group work hard to raise awareness of environmental issues and to come up with new ideas to be more environmentally friendly at work.

Social committee
The social side is an important part of life at RWK Goodman. The Social committee are responsible for organising the all important firm-wide social events including the glamourous Christmas party as well as a number of socials throughout the year including a summer party, various sporting events and regular Friday night drinks. Every year there is the annual Partners V Staff cricket match (which is rather competitive!) and regular trainee events give those new to the firm plenty of opportunity to get involved and get to know people. I would strongly recommend getting involved in these events. It is a great opportunity to get to know your colleagues outside of the office and helps to strengthen working relationships.

As well as the core committees there are a number of additional things to get involved in while you’re in your seats. During my time as a corporate trainee I have attended a number of events representing the firm including assisting in presentations to universities, a networking day for women in business and regular business lunches, giving me the opportunity to engage with local business people.

With the recently announced forthcoming merge with London firm Royds, I am excited about what else might be on the horizon for us to get involved in!

Learn more about RWK Goodman's CSR commitment and relationship we have with our communities.