Member Article

Jackson Lees Group makes a positive difference with Culture Week

Award-winning law firm Jackson Lees Group has celebrated diversity in all its forms during a special series of events at its inaugural Culture Week.

The firm’s core value is to Make a Positive Difference and the celebratory event aimed to embrace and explore the diverse range of cultures across the firm, with a fun-filled week of daily interactive sessions, including two guest talks from local diversity experts.

Zia Chaudhry MBE, Director of the Foundation for Citizenship at Liverpool John Moores, delivered his guest talk on the importance of diversity in the workplace. While university lecturer Rachel Boyle, a race, racism and ethnicity researcher, explored racism, perceptions and stereotypes during a session with the group.

She said: “It was an honour to be invited in to talk to the staff at BJC. The issue of race and racism is at a crucial point in our society and it was excellent to see the firm engaging in such a meaningful way. BJC is a dynamic, modern firm filled to the rafters with talent. Clear principles and commitment to social justice are evident everywhere and the discussions we had were so rich. It was incredibly nourishing to be in a space with such excellent people and I look forward to any future work we may do together.”

The events were hosted by Jackson Lees Group’s Diversity Committee with an aim to enable open, positive conversations exploring diverse cultures within and outside of the firm.

Hetal Hathiwala, a trainee solicitor at Jackson Lees Group chairs the Diversity Committee, she said: “We’re living through turbulent times and we want to give all of our people a safe space to open up about their backgrounds, share their experiences, and talk about issues without fear of judgement.

“It’s such a privilege to see colleagues and external speakers voicing their stories and opinions, feeling comfortable enough to share their own personal journeys with us. Being open and understanding is crucial to us as a firm and I’m honoured to see all the hard work paying off.”

Educational talks included ‘What’s the Q?’ which addressed the Q in LGBTQ+, while another session explored the concept of ‘White Privilege’. The week ended with a celebration of diversity, encouraging people to bring and share food, drink and music that meant something to them/their culture.

Brian Cullen, Group Chief Executive Officer, said: “This has been a wonderful week, which has given us all the opportunity to reflect on our personal journeys and cultures and learn more about each other. As a firm, we’re committed to creating a diverse, representative team, and embracing and celebrating our different cultures has been extremely uplifting and insightful.

“Our Diversity Committee is doing an incredible job and we look forward to seeing them continue their great work, reaching out and engaging with our local communities, and helping to encourage people from a wider range of backgrounds to explore a career in law.”

The award-winning Jackson Lees Group provides full-service legal solutions to personal and commercial clients and has over 280 employees across six offices in Merseyside and Manchester.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Sarah Jones .