The 17-year-old came through the academy ranks of Bristol Rovers and last season won the Under-18s player of the year award at the club.
Barton called up Lawrence for pre-season ahead of the 2022/23 campaign, and the central-midfielder scored a goal in the Gas’ 6-1 win over Melksham Town in a friendly.
Lawrence made his senior debut as a substitute against Burton Albion in August and has signed a two-year professional contract with Bristol Rovers.
Barton stated that everyone at the club are delighted to tie down the youngster with a two-year deal and believes Lawrence to be a top player who is improving on a day-to-day basis.
The Bristol Rovers boss is of the view that fitness is one of the aspects which the player needs to work on, as in the modern game, a midfielder has to show a strong work ethic on the pitch.
“We’ve got to be careful with him because he’s still a young man, but he shows on a day-by-day basis the qualities he has when he joins in with the first team”, Barton was quoted as saying by Bristol Live.
“It’s our job to keep developing that.
“He’s got a lot of work to do, don’t get me wrong.
“He’s got a lot of work to do on the fitness aspect of his game.
“If you want to play in midfield now, you have to be knocking out between 10-12km of running in a 90-minute game and I think Jerry’s got a bit of work to do in that department.
“He’s still a bit of a teddy bear when it comes to that.
“But with the resources we have and the fitness staff we have, we really believe in his future.
“We’re delighted to tie him down to a professional contract, he’s a top kid.”
Lawrence started his first game for Bristol Rovers against Plymouth Argyle in an EFL Cup tie on 30th August and assisted once before being substituted in the 62nd minute.
