Law firms are making a push to give talent of all backgrounds opportunities.

Baker McKenzie and Linklaters are among the law firms to place in the top 10 in a City of London Corporation-backed ranking of the U.K.'s top employers for social mobility.

The Social Mobility Index 2018, created by the Social Mobility Foundation and Social Mobility Commission, and sponsored by The City of London Corporation, evaluates employers' engagement with disadvantaged people as well as their recruitment and selection processes, to measure their social mobility performance.

Baker McKenzie is the highest-positioned law firm championing social mobility efforts this year, taking fifth place in the ranking – up from 10th last year.

Linklaters was the only Magic Circle firm to place in the top 10, jumping two places from last year to take ninth spot.

This year, the ranking added 25 new companies to the ranking, making up a Top 75 Employer Index from last year's Top 50. Law firms make up almost a third of the top 75, with 24 of them placing in the index.

This year also saw nine new law firms make the ranking, with Allen & Overy debuting at 32nd, and rival Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer at 64th.

Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner, which placed first in the law firms ranked last year, fell six places from fourth to 10th this year.

The firm said in a statement: "We are exceptionally proud to be recognised for a third time as a top 10 employer in the UK for our approach to social mobility. We know the work is far from done and we are striving to find new and innovative ways to widen access to careers in the legal profession."

DLA Piper also jumped 20 places to reach 18th on the table this year, while Slaughter and May climbed to 40th position from 45th last year.

The index assessed 125 employers from 18 sectors, who collectively employ more than 1.1 million people in the U.K. The employers answered about 100 questions across seven different areas, and more than 14,000 employees also took part in a voluntary survey.