Toby Farmiloe: practising solicitor
Toby Farmiloe is part of Heathfield Community College’s alumni and is currently a solicitor specialising in commercial property. His job involves acting for a number of clients who are doing various things with land and require the services of a lawyer. For example, Toby is currently advising one of the country’s largest owners of petrol stations on their sale of multiple garages across the country.
'I enjoy the variety of work, even within the fairly niche area of commercial property. There’s a lot of different types of legal matters to work on, including transactions, selling and purchasing land and negotiating leases and all the work that goes into these,’ says Toby. 'I also enjoy the human interaction at the core of the job.' For example, one moment of the day he could be speaking to a nice client or trading war-stories with a colleague and then, hours later, he could be having to play hard-ball with another solicitor in a tense negotiation.
After completing his A-Levels at HCC, Toby took an English degree at Exeter University. In order to make the most out of his experience, Toby made sure to become involved in as many extra-curricular activities as he could whilst there. 'I knew that clubs and societies would help me demonstrate the skills that employers would value most.’ Aside from this Toby also felt as if the extra-curricular activities were quite good fun! Alongside his degree Toby also completed work experience in the holidays which he secured by asking the limited number of people he knew at the time who worked in Law whether he could spend some time at their workplaces. This technique of obtaining work is known as networking and is utilised by many people in order to create connections with those within their desired field.
After university, Toby went to Law School to undertake the Graduate Diploma in Law (which is known as the “Law conversion course” and is essentially a Law degree which takes place over the span of a year). Afterwards he enrolled in the Legal Practice Course before going on to complete a training contract at Stephenson Harwood LLP. Toby’s training was essentially two years of learning on the job. It consisted of working for six months in four different departments. One of his six-month placements even took place in Singapore which Toby found ‘great fun!’ At the end of it all Toby was a qualified solicitor.
Since then, Toby has spent time working as a tutor at the Law School he attended. Currently Toby is working as a practising solicitor again at a different firm called Pinsent Masons LLP.
.
Whenasked what advice he would give to his younger self, Toby simply replied, ‘Back yourself.’ He explains, 'Overconfidence and arrogance will put people’s backs up and cause you to make misjudgements. But misplaced under-confidence can critically hold you back too because it can make you decide against taking risks and claiming that which is rightfully yours.’ He also urges individuals to stop comparing themselves to others. 'All of those people who seem so effortlessly clever and articulate have their own problems, anxieties and struggles (and if they don’t now, they probably will!).’ Toby is also a firm believer that time goes quicker as you age. 'Before you know it your time will be up so, while you ought to turn an eye every so often to sensible planning for the future, you should also make the most you can of now.’
Toby had plenty of praise for HCC and particularly positive memories of his teachers. 'I remember my English teacher becoming concerned that my revision was getting to me. She stepped in and took the time to put me on the right track. I’ll always be grateful for that.’
Aside from the teachers, Toby also had many other memorable moments at school, filled with lots of laughter and the dubious joy of being able to buy a cheeseburger and chips in the canteen every day for under £2.00! Despite these positive memories, Toby also believes that he could have improved his time at school by enjoying the moment more instead of worrying about exams and the future as much as he did.
Toby’s proudest moment from his time at HCC was in Year 13 A-Level Drama. 'I was part of a very special class which succeeded in producing and performing a devised piece of theatre which explored the question of whether or not the War in Iraq was a Holy War. The months of brainstorming, writing, heated discussion among the group and rehearsals was gruelling. The stunned silence at the end from every audience who watched it before they broke into rapturous applause will stay with me forever.’ Toby believes that his Drama A Level remains to this day the most useful qualification he has. 'We all have to perform in so many ways in our lives. Drama gave me the tools to get in the right headspace for that, whatever the circumstances.’
One of Toby’s proudest moments was, surprisingly, after he had initially failed an exam as part of his interviewing and advising assessment in his second year of Law School. The exam required Toby to go into a room and ask an actor (playing a client) a number of questions in order to elicit particular information about a fictional scenario. Toby had prepared as much as he could but unfortunately at the critical moment his mind ‘went blank’. Toby says that he crumbled, stammered and knew he had failed the short assessment before he had even left the room. Toby acknowledges that ‘being certain in the knowledge of failure isn’t great at the best of times.’ But for Toby the importance of this exam was heightened as the training contract which he had secured was conditional on first-time passes of all of his Law School assessments. Therefore, not only was Toby certain he had failed his test but also lost his future job too. When it was confirmed a month or so later that he had definitely failed, the law firm who had awarded Toby his training contract kindly said that he could keep it as long as he sat the assessment again and passed. Knowing that the pressure was now on, Toby ‘spent the next couple of months busily and frantically revising’ allowing Toby to pass the assessment the next time he took it. Toby remains prouder of that little “competent” grade he received for that exam than of any other result he has ever received as it ‘represents battling back from a setback and snatching victory from the jaws of defeat.’
Despite experiencing wobbles in his journey Toby has now come to the realisation that his regrets are in fact just lessons he is able to learn from. ‘At each stage I think I did the best I could with the information and experience I had at the time. As long as I do my best not to repeat past mistakes, that’s all that matters.’
As for advice to current students thinking about their next steps, Toby reminds us that ‘the real world is about far more than exams and assessments.’ He argues, 'It’s a good idea to try to get good grades at school and beyond (because it does make things easier if you do) but then your academic qualifications will diminish in importance more and more with each passing year and employers will increasingly judge you for your experience and your attributes.’ He believes that the ‘qualities of hard work, resilience, efficiency, organisation, effective communication, inter-personal skills and creativity are in most cases far more important than grades so the sooner you can start developing these the better.’
Toby has a very optimistic approach to the future: 'Very little is set in stone. Don’t believe people when they say your decisions or performance now will determine the rest of your life: they often just say that to scare you. If you set your mind to something and work hard, in most cases you can achieve it, whatever your age and stage. If you’re not content or if things go wrong and you want something better for yourself in the future, you can find a way to make things happen. Whether that involves applying for a new job, studying a course in your free time or building up a “side hustle” in the evenings and at weekends, you can get what you want by taking a multitude of small steps over time, provided you are prepared to work for it.’
Bethany Hutchison, Y13
'I enjoy the variety of work, even within the fairly niche area of commercial property. There’s a lot of different types of legal matters to work on, including transactions, selling and purchasing land and negotiating leases and all the work that goes into these,’ says Toby. 'I also enjoy the human interaction at the core of the job.' For example, one moment of the day he could be speaking to a nice client or trading war-stories with a colleague and then, hours later, he could be having to play hard-ball with another solicitor in a tense negotiation.
After completing his A-Levels at HCC, Toby took an English degree at Exeter University. In order to make the most out of his experience, Toby made sure to become involved in as many extra-curricular activities as he could whilst there. 'I knew that clubs and societies would help me demonstrate the skills that employers would value most.’ Aside from this Toby also felt as if the extra-curricular activities were quite good fun! Alongside his degree Toby also completed work experience in the holidays which he secured by asking the limited number of people he knew at the time who worked in Law whether he could spend some time at their workplaces. This technique of obtaining work is known as networking and is utilised by many people in order to create connections with those within their desired field.
After university, Toby went to Law School to undertake the Graduate Diploma in Law (which is known as the “Law conversion course” and is essentially a Law degree which takes place over the span of a year). Afterwards he enrolled in the Legal Practice Course before going on to complete a training contract at Stephenson Harwood LLP. Toby’s training was essentially two years of learning on the job. It consisted of working for six months in four different departments. One of his six-month placements even took place in Singapore which Toby found ‘great fun!’ At the end of it all Toby was a qualified solicitor.
Since then, Toby has spent time working as a tutor at the Law School he attended. Currently Toby is working as a practising solicitor again at a different firm called Pinsent Masons LLP.
.
Whenasked what advice he would give to his younger self, Toby simply replied, ‘Back yourself.’ He explains, 'Overconfidence and arrogance will put people’s backs up and cause you to make misjudgements. But misplaced under-confidence can critically hold you back too because it can make you decide against taking risks and claiming that which is rightfully yours.’ He also urges individuals to stop comparing themselves to others. 'All of those people who seem so effortlessly clever and articulate have their own problems, anxieties and struggles (and if they don’t now, they probably will!).’ Toby is also a firm believer that time goes quicker as you age. 'Before you know it your time will be up so, while you ought to turn an eye every so often to sensible planning for the future, you should also make the most you can of now.’
Toby had plenty of praise for HCC and particularly positive memories of his teachers. 'I remember my English teacher becoming concerned that my revision was getting to me. She stepped in and took the time to put me on the right track. I’ll always be grateful for that.’
Aside from the teachers, Toby also had many other memorable moments at school, filled with lots of laughter and the dubious joy of being able to buy a cheeseburger and chips in the canteen every day for under £2.00! Despite these positive memories, Toby also believes that he could have improved his time at school by enjoying the moment more instead of worrying about exams and the future as much as he did.
Toby’s proudest moment from his time at HCC was in Year 13 A-Level Drama. 'I was part of a very special class which succeeded in producing and performing a devised piece of theatre which explored the question of whether or not the War in Iraq was a Holy War. The months of brainstorming, writing, heated discussion among the group and rehearsals was gruelling. The stunned silence at the end from every audience who watched it before they broke into rapturous applause will stay with me forever.’ Toby believes that his Drama A Level remains to this day the most useful qualification he has. 'We all have to perform in so many ways in our lives. Drama gave me the tools to get in the right headspace for that, whatever the circumstances.’
One of Toby’s proudest moments was, surprisingly, after he had initially failed an exam as part of his interviewing and advising assessment in his second year of Law School. The exam required Toby to go into a room and ask an actor (playing a client) a number of questions in order to elicit particular information about a fictional scenario. Toby had prepared as much as he could but unfortunately at the critical moment his mind ‘went blank’. Toby says that he crumbled, stammered and knew he had failed the short assessment before he had even left the room. Toby acknowledges that ‘being certain in the knowledge of failure isn’t great at the best of times.’ But for Toby the importance of this exam was heightened as the training contract which he had secured was conditional on first-time passes of all of his Law School assessments. Therefore, not only was Toby certain he had failed his test but also lost his future job too. When it was confirmed a month or so later that he had definitely failed, the law firm who had awarded Toby his training contract kindly said that he could keep it as long as he sat the assessment again and passed. Knowing that the pressure was now on, Toby ‘spent the next couple of months busily and frantically revising’ allowing Toby to pass the assessment the next time he took it. Toby remains prouder of that little “competent” grade he received for that exam than of any other result he has ever received as it ‘represents battling back from a setback and snatching victory from the jaws of defeat.’
Despite experiencing wobbles in his journey Toby has now come to the realisation that his regrets are in fact just lessons he is able to learn from. ‘At each stage I think I did the best I could with the information and experience I had at the time. As long as I do my best not to repeat past mistakes, that’s all that matters.’
As for advice to current students thinking about their next steps, Toby reminds us that ‘the real world is about far more than exams and assessments.’ He argues, 'It’s a good idea to try to get good grades at school and beyond (because it does make things easier if you do) but then your academic qualifications will diminish in importance more and more with each passing year and employers will increasingly judge you for your experience and your attributes.’ He believes that the ‘qualities of hard work, resilience, efficiency, organisation, effective communication, inter-personal skills and creativity are in most cases far more important than grades so the sooner you can start developing these the better.’
Toby has a very optimistic approach to the future: 'Very little is set in stone. Don’t believe people when they say your decisions or performance now will determine the rest of your life: they often just say that to scare you. If you set your mind to something and work hard, in most cases you can achieve it, whatever your age and stage. If you’re not content or if things go wrong and you want something better for yourself in the future, you can find a way to make things happen. Whether that involves applying for a new job, studying a course in your free time or building up a “side hustle” in the evenings and at weekends, you can get what you want by taking a multitude of small steps over time, provided you are prepared to work for it.’
Bethany Hutchison, Y13
