Norton Rose is among a trio of firms to have announced trainee retention rates for September, with the firm keeping on 88% of its newly-qualified lawyers (NQs).

The top 10 UK firm is set to keep on 14 of 16 trainees this autumn, after all of those who were offered a position accepted.

This year's round is broadly in line with last year, when the firm retained 26 trainees out of 30, equating to a retention rate of 87%.

Meanwhile, Addleshaw Goddard has announced that 31 out of 36 trainees (86%) qualifying in September will stay on, after the firm also kept 86% of its March qualifiers, with six of seven NQs taking a job at the firm.

The retention rate at the top 20 UK firm is the same as a year ago, with the autumn qualifiers split across the firm's offices in London, Leeds and Manchester.

Addleshaw Goddard training principal and real estate litigation partner Andrew Blower added: "Our retention rate remains one of the strongest in the market and reflects a genuine commitment to attracting, retaining and developing great people as well as a culture, client base and ambition that is attractive to the very best talent."

Separately, Mills & Reeve has posted a retention rate of 36%, with just eight of the firm's 22 trainees accepting positions at the firm. The round marks a significant drop on last year, when the firm retained 91% of its trainees.

The firm said in a statement: "We are disappointed and sorry not to be able to offer more of the 2009 intake positions, as they are a highly talented group of lawyers and we have invested significantly in them. Many of them have already succeeded in finding alternative roles and we will be doing all that we can to help the remainder find new positions. We wish them well in their future careers."

The news follows last week's announcement that Linklaters and Eversheds will keep on 93% and 87% of NQs respectively.