Your challenges
Educational institutions are often the most complex of organisations, operating within the public, private and charity sectors and experiencing pressures from many directions. Increased competition for funding and for students are common themes in what is an era of increased regulation and accountability.
Achieving your ambitions
Based on our experience of working with educational institutions, we have concluded that a collaborative way of working is what helps our clients to plan and stay ahead of their legal issues in such a complex environment. As one of the firm's core sectors, we invest time with our education clients to understand their issues and projects to provide unrivalled support and value for money. We seek to pass on new insights by regular briefings, workshops and, most of all, through personal engagement with those in leadership and management who are responsible for dealing with legal matters.
The strength you need
We act for over 120 education institutions across the UK, including universities, colleges and independent schools. Each year, around 40 of our partners and 140 of our lawyers from our specialist teams are engaged in the latest real estate, commercial and governance projects in the sector. We harness our experience and connections in other sectors: charities, banking, business, health, local authorities and insurance. We assist our clients in their overseas activities through our membership of the State Capital Group*, an association of leading law firms around the world.
Lawyers you can trust
Our lawyers have acted in test cases in the education sector, ranging from the rights of employees based overseas to the scope of freedom of information legislation, and from the rights of students under equality law through to obtaining a House of Lords ruling on VAT-saving schemes for library developments. The leading independent legal directories have noted that we have "a grasp of education law that is second to none".
*Member firms of the State Capital Group practise independently and not in a relationship for the joint practice of law.