The increased focus on D&I in 2020 has been inspired by a number of events, from the death of George Floyd in the US to remote working and the impact that can have on individuals with protected characteristics and also on wellbeing.
Legal News Wales has hosted a number of discussions on what a diverse law firm might look like, and some of the barriers, but this event aims to focus on what law firms can DO to enhance their D&I policies and put them into action to help their people, their business models and the communities they serve.
Our recent roundtable event with Admiral Law and Yolk Recruitment, is a fantastic watch to help law firms in Wales lead the way with bold, tangible diversity and inclusion policies that benefit your firm and meet the diverse needs of our communities.
This event was hosted on 1 March 2021 as part of our St David’s Day programme this year, celebrating the legal sector in Wales.
Admiral Law is one of those law firms on the start of its renewed D&I policy journey in light of new diversity conversations over the past year so Legal News Wales has invited the team, and others, to share their experiences, thoughts and challenges with other law firms in Wales.
What we covered
Our Editor Emma Waddingham guided a panel of speakers through a series of D&I policy topics (below) in this free one-hour event. If we have time, we’d welcome questions from attendees using the chat function.
The event offered some tangible ideas for attendees to take away with them – as well as understand the business case for having a holistic, relevant D&I policy. We also shared feedback from recruitment candidates as law firms compete for talent.
A variety of D&I topics were highlighted, including:
- Retention: the pool of talent coming into law is diverse but this still isn’t reflected in more senior roles, due to a disproportionate decline in numbers amongst certain groups. Why is this the case and how to understand and measure any change we make.
- Social mobility: How can law firms turn the dial here and make real progress in Wales?
- The important of nurturing a diverse workforce
- How we better serve and support all of our clients, irrespective of their personal situations
- Attracting new talent: what are candidates looking for? Can we deliver?
- Creating safe spaces: for conversations, questions, answers; to listen; to ensure people feel valued
- Wellbeing
Panelists
- Hannah Pinches, Head of Admiral Law
- Sophia Vasquez, Deputy Head of Admiral Law
- Sheryl Dame, Operations Manager, chair of the LGBTQ forum at Admiral Law
- Dan Caunt, In-house Head of Legal, Admiral Group Plc
- Ruth Reid, Barrister, Founder of Cake & Counsel
- Scyra Alexander, Operations Manager, chair of Minority Ethnic & Social Mobility forums at Admiral Law
- Sandeep Gill, Serious Injuries Solicitor & member of Minority Ethnic forum at Admiral Law
- Rhian Smith, JCP Solicitors & Chair of the Cardiff & District Law Society Disability D&I Sub-committee
- Saffia Hurley, Recruitment Assistant, Geldards LLP
Watch now
This event was hosted on 1 March 2021.
Catch up on the rest of our St David’s Day 2021 programme
To watch more of our two-day event series celebrating the legal sector in Wales and St David’s day 2021, click here.
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