A student from Gloucestershire is breaking her way into the legal industry after winning a nationwide award with a cash prize of £5,000 and a coveted work placement at a top law firm.

Hana Kapadia, who is from Cheltenham and at university in Bristol, won National Accident Helpline's Future Legal Mind award in March this year. The annual award was created to give young legal talent a chance to get their foot in the door through work experience.

Hana said: "It has given me an edge in a competitive industry and was an amazing experience."

Having volunteered at Citizen's Advice and National Centre for Domestic Violence, Hana is no stranger to case work. During her week at NewLaw, she was able to sample and grasp the complexities of commercial law, dispute resolution, private client law and personal injury law, on top of her previous experience.

Now studying for her Legal Practice course, a prerequisite for law graduates looking to move into employment at a legal firm, Hana said the training provided during the work experience has given her valuable insight into what to expect.

"My week at NewLaw, was incredibly varied and brought what I had learnt on the Graduate Diploma in Law and am currently learning on the Legal Practice course to life. Future Legal Mind is a fantastic opportunity for law students to think about complex legal concepts and where the legal profession may be heading, so I would absolutely recommend law students looking to enter the award to go for it."

National Accident Helpline, which created Future Legal Mind, runs the award annually to help the best young talent get some support towards their future legal career.

Managing Director and chair of judges Simon Trott, said: "We were extremely impressed with Hana's essay. It was thoroughly researched, lively, and showed a deep understanding of the UK legal system."