A Scottish law firm is helping women bolster their careers by taking their networking outdoors.
Burness Paull has launched a golf programme for women, designed to expand their professional connections through sport and boost confidence in participating in golf-focused business events. The “Swing into Summer” scheme offers beginner-friendly training sessions to demystify the game and make it more accessible.
“The commitments we made when signing up to the Pathways Pledge centred around improving access to work, business development opportunities and career progression for female colleagues,” explained Nicky Clemence, partner at Burness Paull. “The Swing into Summer initiative is just one example of this commitment in action.
(Image: Damian Shields)
“Golf has long been known as a powerful tool for networking and building relationships. However, the feedback we got from our female clients and colleagues was that they weren’t sure where to start.
“We were keen to help them clear that initial hurdle and it’s been fantastic to watch the groups enjoy each other’s company, develop their skills and hopefully gain the confidence to play golf more regularly, with all the benefits that can bring professionally and personally.”
The firm is delivering sessions at locations including the Mearns Golf Academy, led by professional coaches and focused on developing practical golf skills in a relaxed, peer-supported environment.
Gemma Young, recently promoted to partner at Burness Paull, said: “Golf often felt like a world that I was looking in on rather than one I naturally belong in, and yet the tangible business benefits of the game are clear when it comes to building relationships and opening doors.
“This initiative was a chance to break down mental barriers around ‘belonging’ as much as it was about creating opportunities for access to professional networks.”
R&A to hand over running of Golf It to independent operator
Golf It opened in August 2023 following the R&A’s purchase of the former Lethamhill golf course to the north of Glasgow. (Image: Supplied)
The R&A is reportedly in late-stage negotiations to appoint a new operator for its Glasgow-based Golf It facility.
Day-to-day running of the centre could potentially be handed over as early as next month, according to bunkered.co.uk. An unnamed source described as familiar with the details said the R&A will continue to own the assets and intellectual property, but a third party will manage the centre as part of a revenue-sharing arrangement.
“The R&A will continue to own Golf It and have strategic oversight but is planning to bring in an experienced leisure facility operator to manage the day-to-day operations of the facility,” a spokesperson for the R&A was quoted as saying.
“We believe this partnership will enable Golf It to build on the progress made in the last few years and are hopeful of concluding this process by the end of the summer. It will also enable The R&A to focus on areas where we are uniquely placed to add value, including participation initiatives and delivering community impact.
“For visitors, it will remain business as usual.”
‘Masters of our own destiny’: Scottish golf club emerges to stand on its own again
Resuming full management control has been ‘challenging’, according to Blair Atholl’s chairman, but also a ‘blessing in disguise’ (Image: Supplied)
Established in 1896, the nine-hole Blair Atholl course located five minutes off the A9 in Perthshire has survived a governance crisis to emerge from more than a decade of outside management and once again stand on its own.
In this week’s edition of Around the Greens, club chairman Hugh Mackintosh explains how he stepped in on a “temporary” emergency basis but has so far spent six years leading efforts to rebuild the club’s constitution and steer it back to autonomy, with membership and visitor spending now on the up.
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