Case studies

The law firm bought digital camera equipment for each group and an initial briefing session was held in the law firm's office over the summer when the young people were introduced to the project and to staff at Pinsent Masons. One Click Photography ran a workshop session at the law firm to introduce the young people to photography techniques and to show them how to use the equipment. The young people were then entrusted with the equipment for three months with a brief to take images of their communities through their own eyes. During Autumn half term, staff from Leeds Metropolitan University's Art Department showed the young people how to edit their photographs on state of the art editing equipment. The young people also received a general introduction to higher education through the university's Aim Higher initiative. Each of the three groups then judged their photos and submitted their finest work into the Pinsent Masons competition. The best photos were blown up onto canvas to be displayed in the Pinsent Masons conference room for one year. The exhibition was launched at a gala evening event to which the young people and their friends and families were invited. Each received a cash prize and a reference from the business. Direct benefit Apart from the new skills developed by the young people and the opportunity they had to work with business and a university on a collaborative project, for two of the young people the project led directly into jobs. They impressed the firm so much during the project that they were offered firstly work placements and then full time jobs in the facilities department of the law firm, saving the firm recruitment costs!

Pinsent Masons has developed the programme further in 2007 with the aim of bringing fresh images from inner city communities into the firm's city centre offices on an annual basis and formalising the work placement programme to introduce up to six further young people to the world of work over the next 12 months.
Images