You may not be accepted on the formal vacation schemes (of large commercial firms etc) but it is never too early to get informal work experience in vacations.
One way to get informal vacation placements is through your contacts - do you, or anyone in your family know anyone who works in a law firm? If so you could ask them if you could spend a couple of days shadowing them.
You could also try sending specualtive applications (with a CV detailing any work experience you already have, part time jobs, A levels, any uni grades) to firms in your local area. You can’t really get a list of the firms that accept first years as these are likely to be smaller firms and so don’t tend to run formal schemes.
It is likely that if you could get in to a law firm either of these ways that it would be unpaid; however it would look great on your CV, both when you do get to applying for formal vacation schemes and when looking for a training contract as it shows a commitment to law. It may also help you decide on your university electives.
For legal voluntary work you could contact your local citizens’ advice bureau - you may not be able to work as a legal advisor as you lack the knowledge at this stage but working on reception / filing etc could lead to something more relevant to law.
