Legal services for everyone –
Adjusting to the needs of disabled people in the legal industry
Cooper Carter Claremont – real life story
Business: Legal services
Number of staff: 25
Disabled customers: Several disabled people use the company’s services.
Website: www.ccclaw.co.uk
What adjustments has the business made?
- Portable hearing loop installed in reception.
- Documents produced in large print for clients who are partially sighted.
- Accessible meeting room and wheelchair-accessible entrance created.
- Home visits offered to clients who are unable to visit the offices.
What benefits have the adjustments brought to the business?
Minor adjustments have made a significant improvement in the service offered to disabled customers. Some of the changes have also benefited employees and other clients. For example, the new ground floor meeting room has been adapted for clients who can’t use the stairs, and also gives non-disabled employees/clients more meeting space.
How did the business feel about making the adjustments?
Karen Goldsmith, Office Manager, says: “Lots of businesses think that making reasonable adjustments will be difficult and expensive. This doesn’t have to be the case. If your business is on the second floor it’s not about thinking how people who use a wheelchair can get up the stairs, it’s about finding an alternative. Turning one of our ground floor rooms into a meeting room not only enables people who use a wheelchair to use our service – it has also benefited the whole company by providing more meeting space.”
Business tips and benefits for the legal industry
Business tips: Useful ways to make your business more accessible to disabled people
- Are you making yourself understood? You will already try to use plain English in your customer communications, but you might want to take particular care when preparing advice and information for disabled clients.
- How about providing some of your disabled clients with legal documents and other paperwork in a different format such as large print, Braille or audiotape?
- Are you a good listener? If, for some reason, you don’t understand a disabled client at first, it helps if you show a little patience. You could ask them to repeat what they said rather than offering corrections or speaking for them. Try to word your questions so that they require simple ‘yes’ or ‘no’ answers where appropriate.
- Can you understand their instructions? Will they be able to follow your advice? You could put things in writing or think about using a specialist communicator, such as a British Sign Language (BSL) interpreter.
- Are your premises accessible? If not, perhaps you could visit some clients at home or arrange to meet them in an accessible public place such as a hotel lobby.
- How non-discriminatory is your company’s recruitment policy? Good legal staff can be hard to find and by overlooking someone with a disability, you could be missing out on exactly the right candidate for the job.
- Are your employees up to speed with the implications of the Disability Discrimination Act? It’s worth remembering that adapting your company’s policies and attitudes towards serving disabled customers is just as important as adjusting your premises. If necessary, you could consider providing staff with disability awareness training.
Business benefits
There are a number of reasons why making reasonable adjustments makes good business sense:
- Treating a disabled person unfairly means you could have legal action taken against you.
- Carrying out a few easy and inexpensive adjustments could soon more than pay for itself.
- Making your services more accessible to disabled customers means they’re far more likely to remain loyal, which could lead to increased profitability.
- Improving your overall level of customer service can really make a difference to disabled peoples’ lives and it can help you stand out from your competitors.
- Looking after your disabled customers means they’ll be more likely to recommend your business and services to others.
- Encouraging applications from disabled people widens your talent pool as well as increasing your chances of finding employees with the right skills and experience.
Contact details
For further advice and information on making adjustments
please email dda.feedback@dwp.gsi.gov.uk