Range Of Activity Across Black History Month Aims To Raise Awareness And Improve Diversity

Irwin Mitchell is marking Black History Month (October) by adopting the Halo Code which is a way employers can be proactively more inclusive towards African-Caribbean employees and colleagues who wear their hair naturally.

The Halo Code seeks to protect employees who come to work with natural hair or protective hairstyles associated with their racial, ethnic and cultural identities. By adopting the Halo Code, Irwin Mitchell is amongst other employers taking a stand to ensure that no member of their community faces barriers or judgments because of their naturally -textured hair.

As well as adopting the Halo Code, people across the firm are also getting involved in various events in support of Black History Month including:

• Our Early Years Careers team are doing a careers workshop on CVs and application forms in partnership with the Black Solicitors Network as part of an ongoing membership.
• Our newest public law and human rights Partner Angela Jackman is speaking at two events: One is at a Wandsworth girls’ school and the other is for UNISON’s National Black Members’ Committee about hair discrimination, speaking about a landmark court case she acted on for a client who was discriminated against for wearing cornrows at his school.
• The firm is also promoting several webinars to colleagues during National Inclusion Week and Black History Month about anti-racism.

Throughout the past year Irwin Mitchell has also held numerous Let’s Talk About Race sessions with hundreds of colleagues across the business taking part, including the Executive team.

Charlotte Delaney, Diversity and Inclusion Manager at Irwin Mitchell, said: “Inclusion is one of the key themes of our Responsible Business strategy and it’s crucial to the unique and supportive culture we have at Irwin Mitchell. Our DNA statement says ‘we value you for who you are and what you bring’ and adopting the Halo Code is a way to show that this is more than just words.

“By adopting the Halo Code and supporting various Black History Month events we hope to raise awareness and improve diversity and inclusion, not just at Irwin Mitchell but across our communities as well.

“We know there is still a long way to go, both as a firm and across the legal sector, on racial equality so it is important that we take positive action to help remove barriers to increase ethnic diversity and create a more inclusive workplace.”