The East Midlands office of business and financial adviser Grant Thornton has recruited a clutch of school leavers and graduates to its 2018 ‘Talent 18’ trainee programme.
The firm’s Leicester-based regional office has recruited six trainees, made up of four school leavers and two graduates, who now begin training programmes across the firm’s audit and tax service teams, and their journey towards securing professional qualifications.
School leavers Molly Clarke, Julaka Latif, Cameron Woods and Mohammed Sabat, join graduates Emily Smith and Halima Hukawala, and are part of the firm’s cohort of 300 trainees that join the firm’s programme across the UK this year, with 16 per cent starting straight from school.
In April, Grant Thornton was awarded a Queen’s Award for Enterprise in the ‘Promoting Opportunity’ category in recognition of its actions to help improve social mobility in the workplace.
In 2013, the firm was the first professional services firm to drop academic barriers to entry and made a number of changes to how it assesses entry level talent, including the introduction of an online interviewing platform and providing coaching pre- and post-interview.
Practice leader of Grant Thornton’s Leicester office, Chris Frostwick, comments: “Grant Thornton is dedicated to creating a firm where opportunity is open to all and broadening the diversity of our intake. We recognise that having a more diverse pool of talent leads to improved organisational performance, a better outcome for clients, and a more productive economy, and that creating a futureproof, diverse workforce is not only good for business, but is also an urgent and ongoing priority for the future of a vibrant economy where people and business can thrive.”
School leaver Molly Clarke joins the Leicester Audit team, and says she is looking forward to the range of opportunities from working at Grant Thornton: “I am keen to develop a good business knowledge alongside building my professional qualifications, and as a trainee at Grant Thornton, I know I will have the chance to work with a range of businesses in different sectors. The firm has a tangible people orientated culture and there was a very personal feel to the recruitment process. I am thrilled to have secured a place on the trainee programme, and pleased to be earning a salary whilst studying for the ACCA qualification.”
Graduate Emily Smith adds: “Grant Thornton places its positive people culture at the heart of the business, to create a greater social impact and enable ambitious new starters to build a successful career.”
Chris Frostwick adds: “Career opportunity and progression isn’t a one-size-fits-all and there are numerous ways to start a successful career. University is not the only option and our higher apprenticeship school leaver programme offers a great opportunity for young people to kick start their career. Indeed, independent analysis has shown that those who have joined since Grant Thornton removed the academic entry requirements five years ago, who wouldn’t have met previous academic requirements, are performing just as well as their graduate peers.”
