This award sought the most innovative and successful examples of best practice in the promotion of equality and diversity. The judges looked for examples of clear benefits to organisations, employees and clients, from embracing equality and diversity policies and practices in the widest sense, to recruiting and retaining the most talented and motivated lawyers.
The winner has an impressive level of commitment and reach across the firm, with diversity set as one of its key milestones. Wragge & Co have developed a breadth of initiatives undertaken to address a wide range of issues, most importantly, barriers known to limit the access and progression of underrepresented groups. The impressive level of achievement and recognition is reflected in 32 per cent of their people working part-time or flexi-time. Wragge & Co also received the Master Trophy in the Great Place to Work initiative.
The Corporate Responsibility Supplier Audit engages the firm’s top 50 suppliers to improve diversity through the procurement process. It makes a real difference through collaboration via individual and group sessions on best practice, as well as monitoring.
The InterLaw Diversity Forum promotes LGBT diversity and inclusion in the London legal sector. The past 12 months are particularly noteworthy as they have seen InterLaw consolidate its role and develop a stream of new initiatives. InterLaw has also made a significant impact by adding LGBT diversity to the current debate on judicial diversity.
Pathways to Law, established by The College of Law and The Sutton Trust, is a £1.5m widening participation programme providing support to A-level students from state schools in England who are interested in a law career and will be the first generation of their family to attend university.
In 2009 the firm’s Women’s Network established a mentoring programme to address the professional and personal development of women within the firm. The feedback from the programme has been extremely positive, both internally from mentors as well as mentees, and externally, with recognition from both clients and the press.