Forbes Solicitors

Employment - Public Sector

Ruth has been our Head of the Public Sector Employment sine 2018 having specialised in employment law for over 25  She delivers sound strategic advice from a position of knowledge and experience, with an impressive understanding of the sector and the specific challenges public sector clients face. She is adept at identifying issues early and providing pragmatic advice to clients tailored to their desired outcomes whilst also offering support and reassurance as to the way forward. She advises on the more complex matters where experience is needed in managing clients’ teams; their trade union relations; their reputational risks; and has a sound understanding of the need for value in line with public sector principles and how clients utilise public money.

During 2025-26, she is proud to have led a talented and hard working team who put clients at the forefront of their advice and support.  Ruth has played an integral role in supporting, mentoring and developing the team by providing supervision and commercial strategic overview; supporting delegation of work and allocating clients to align with the right team members for them and their work.

Ruth is recognised for her key role in securing new clients and managing client relationships; having worked via tender process and seizing opportunities within the sector; whilst still being available to clients to provide complex and technical advice. She works hard to engage with potential new clients; referrers and contacts at an early stage to understand their specific needs and explore ways of working that present quality and value in achieving desired objectives. This allows her to lead the team bringing niche ways of working and new ideas for development of markets where there is sufficient demand whilst sustaining long standing relationships.

Ruth is frequently recognised by clients and contacts within the education and public sectors as someone who is a more than able communicator; direct, decisive, and pragmatic and is sought out by clients for her approachability and her ability to work with them to provide solutions. She is sought out regularly due to her reputation in the sector and is able to ably signpost clients to other colleagues in the relevant sectors.  Ruth has a particular eye for detail, and has a strong client care ethic with willingness to listen and address the issues clients face which is demonstrated by her long standing relationships with clients. ‎

She is a Trustee for a multi academy trust which gives her another perspective on the issues her clients experience. She has represented both employees and employers at Employment Tribunal, including conducting her own advocacy on multi-day cases. Ruth is also highly experienced in negotiating complex settlements and exits for her clients, and is a skilled investigator. Ruth has carried out several complex and high-profile investigations on behalf of clients and provides strategic advice around complex redundancy and restructures, TUPE and complex discrimination cases. She has recently supported clients to work with colleagues who advise on exclusions and SEND issues arising from complaints received by clients in the education sector.

Ruth is a trusted advisor to many clients and colleagues and is recognised as a regular and knowledgeable speaker at events. She has hosted regular Q&As for the Education sector on a variety of topics bringing different areas of law to the sector. She presents webinars and bespoke training sessions to clients including most recently sexual harassment; Employment Rights Act and pay negotiations – collective bargaining, the impact of AI on education. She leads on building profile and presence for the team working in partnership with the Key; ISBL; and LASBM in the education sector. Ruth was involved in speaking at a Panel session at the ISBL national conference in 2025 addressing business leaders in education and following her address was complemented for her understanding of the challenges faced in the sector.

She is also a regular contributor on social media and in the press; having been quoted a number of times on press pieces in the education sector and updating the sector; being ahead of the curve on dealing with the real issues in education. She and the team have recently hosted Mock Employment Tribunals; frequent Q&A sessions and Mock Disciplinary cases to provide both paid training and added value for some existing clients and potential new clients. She also recognises the significant contribution of her immediate team and the wider Forbes Education and Housing team; who work together to support the growth and presence in the sectors.