How we won ‘Best law society overall’ at the Student Law Society Awards

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The Edward Bramley Law Society is the largest law society at The University of Sheffield and one of the largest in Europe. It holds a special place in many law and non-law students' hearts at the university due to the incredible opportunities we offer and the tight-knit, inclusive community we strive to cultivate.

This wouldn’t be possible without the dedication and commitment from our exceptional 25 committee members. Our large committee is the driving force behind all our success and has been integral to being able to deliver so many opportunities to our members. This year we were incredibly grateful to have been nominated for four awards and the winners of two awards at the LawCareers.Net Student Law Society Awards 2024: ‘Best society for aspiring barristers’ and ‘Best law society overall’, sponsored by Burges Salmon LLP.

My name is Katelyn Groenewald and I’m the president of the Edward Bramley Law Society and in the final year of my LLB law degree. As part of my degree, I was fortunate enough to complete a study year abroad at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens. In July 2023, I secured a training contract at Hogan Lovells commencing in February 2026, which I’m very excited to embark upon!

Becoming president

My journey with the Edward Bramley Law Society began in September 2020 when I started university in the midst of the pandemic. In a similar position to my peers, I felt quite isolated due to the lack of opportunities to meet or connect with course mates or like-minded individuals since our day-to-day lives played out in virtual lectures and breakout rooms. I joined the Edward Bramley Law Society and participated in some of the virtual events hosted throughout the year. However, having felt as though I’d missed a significant portion of my first-year university experience, I wanted to be part of the committee to provide the next year of freshers with plenty of in-person opportunities.

I was elected as a social secretary ahead of my second year of university which is where my journey with the society properly started. Having gone from a few social interactions to a year full of first-time social events since the pandemic presented many challenges. However, being surrounded by a team of like-minded committee members and such heavily engaged society members made the experience extremely worthwhile, as well as driving me to want to run as president of the society in my final year, once returning from my year abroad.

Benefits of joining a society

Our society is multi-faceted, boasting a unique and distinctive blend of events, activities and opportunities, while also providing an unparalleled sense of community and camaraderie among our members. Being part of our society provides an excellent platform for students of all backgrounds to connect, share experiences, and build long-lasting friendships, while also making a positive impact on our members’ overall university experience, and enhancing their future career endeavours following their time with us. This year the Edward Bramley Law Society went above and beyond, successfully building and expanding on the accomplishments of our predecessors. Our actions centred around ensuring our members’ voices were heard through feedback from the previous year, as well as our underpinning aim to ensure every single event was inclusive in terms of gender, religion, cost, accessibility and background.

Multitude of opportunities

As an academic society at heart, we offer a varied range of career-focused events with law firms, chambers and other partner organisations, as well as allowing students to network with trainees and established lawyers, barristers and professionals at our annual careers dinner, which was a particular highlight this year.

Additionally, our society also has its own sports and Bar divisions to accommodate our members’ wide range of interests. Our sports division offers the unique opportunity for students to develop their football and netball skills, improving their physical and mental wellbeing, while fostering a fun social environment with their dedicated weekly sports social events.

Furthermore, our Bar division promotes and organises events which stimulate students interested in a career at the Bar by making it as accessible as possible. Some of these events include our bi-annual internal mooting competitions, our external mooting team, client interviews, bail applications and negotiation competitions, as well as career workshops and mini-pupillages that have boasted the highest attendance since the Edward Bramley Law Society’s merger with the Bar Society in 2020.

In their responses for the Student Law Society Awards, our members highlighted that “the Bar Division has been nothing short of spectacular”, which is a true testament to our committee members’ hard work and dedication throughout the year. I believe that it’s this commitment and well-rounded offering that won us the ‘Best society for aspiring barristers’ award.

In acknowledgement of winning the ‘Best law society overall’ award this year, the LawCareers.Net team kindly wrote: “It was hard to find fault in this society. Every aspect of its work has been meticulously planned with thought and care. You can tell how much the society values its members and strives for excellence”. On behalf of the 2023/24 committee, we’re all so grateful that our achievements have been recognised by such a prestigious award for the second year running and know the next committee will strive to build upon this and achieve just as much success.

Katelyn Groenewald is president of the Edward Bramley Law Society in 2023/24.